Could You Pass Review?

Posted on January 12, 2011 by russellmckinney

One night a British soldier was caught creeping back into his quarters from some nearby woods. Under suspicion of being a spy, he was immediately brought before his commanding officer and ordered to explain his actions. The soldier answered that he had gone into the woods to pray.

His commanding officer, who was highly skeptical of that answer, sarcastically scoffed, “And have you been in the habit of spending such time in private prayer?” “Yes, sir,” answered the soldier. “Well then,” said the officer, “get down on your knees right now and pray, because I assure you that you never needed it more than you do at this moment.”

Expecting a death sentence for treason, the soldier knelt down on the spot and poured out his soul in prayer. He prayed with such eloquence, emotion, and obvious experience that it was undeniable that he truly was a genuine man of prayer. Consequently, when his prayer was finished, the commanding officer rendered his verdict in terms a military man would use. He said, “You may go. I believe your story. If you hadn’t drilled often, you couldn’t have done so well at review.”

The application of this story is easy to grasp. How much do you pray each day? Is it enough to give you the experience and expertise to pass review? If it isn’t, then you need to find your own “woods” somewhere and start drilling. Remember that even Jesus, God the Son in human flesh, was a man of prayer. And if He needed to pray, so do you.

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Started School Yet?

Posted on January 11, 2011 by russellmckinney

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are my disciples indeed.” (John 8:31, N.K.J.V.)

John Phillip Sousa was sitting in his hotel room on a summer evening when he heard a hand-organ on the street just below his window. The organ grinder was playing Sousa’s famous march, “The Stars & Stripes Forever.” But Sousa found himself greatly irritated by the way the song was slowly dragging out of the organ. Finally, he couldn’t stand it any longer and dashed down to the street. “Here, here,” he said to the slothful grinder, “that’s no way to play that march.” Then Sousa seized the handle of the organ and began working feverishly as the song’s proper power and purpose surged from the instrument. Afterwards, the grinder simply bowed low and smiled.

The next night Sousa heard the same hand-organ playing the same march again, but this time the tune was sounding forth in the right tempo. Mildly amused, Sousa looked out the window and to his surprise saw a great crowd gathered around the organ grinder. He went down to investigate and saw that the grinder had now placed a large card over his organ. At the top of the card, written in large letters, was the grinder’s name. Underneath his name, written in equally large letters, were the words: PUPIL OF JOHN PHILIP SOUSA.

The Bible has much to say about Christian discipleship, and the word “disciple” literally means “learner.” Sadly, even though every disciple is a Christian, every Christian is not a disciple. You see, there is a considerable difference between Jesus merely being your Savior (as eternally vital as that is) and Him being your Teacher. So tell me, Christian, can you truthfully write under your name “PUPIL OF JESUS CHRIST”? If you can’t, I’d say it’s past time you enrolled in school.

Posted in Discipleship, Teaching | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Incredible Power of Showing Kindness

Posted on January 10, 2011 by russellmckinney

The Battle Creek Sanitarium in Battle Creek, Michigan, was once a world-renowned health resort. Opening its doors in 1866, the Sanitarium eventually grew into a massive complex that included a hospital, a nursing school, and multiple research facilities that were all designed to further the causes of health and wellness. The Sanitarium catered especially to the wealthy, and the likes of Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, J.C. Penny, and Amelia Earhart spent time there.

The Sanitarium was a place where new (sometimes even controversial) treatments were tried. These included treatments involving hydrotherapy, electrotherapy, dietary nutrition, and physical exercise. Scientific experimentation also took place in the research facilities, and one story from those days was told by Dr. Carolyn Geisel, who became a noted speaker who traveled around the world to promote the work being done at the Sanitarium. Her story might seem a bit cruel to our modern sensibilities, but keep in mind that she and her coworkers were in the business of thinking outside the box in their efforts to figure out what makes for heath and wellness. Her story goes as follows:

There came to the building where we lived and worked the cutest little pup I ever saw. We all fell in love with him. He was so anxious to show us his appreciation of our affection that he wagged his tail with such enthusiasm that his whole body wagged along with it. He was the happiest pup I ever saw. We took him into the operating room, gave him an anesthetic, and probed the bone in one of his rear legs. The marrow was a beautiful pink, filled with red corpuscles. We carefully bound up the wound, and it healed almost overnight.

Then we passed the word around that no one was to smile at the pup or speak in a kind tone of voice for six weeks. We fed him as always, but nobody petted him or showed any affection. The poor little pup just wilted. He became the most forlorn little dog I ever saw. He crept into the dark corners, and his tail dragged the ground. We took him back to the operating room and examined the marrow in the same bone. It was a dark brownish color, and the red corpuscles were very scarce. It took the wound a long time to heal, despite the fact that we showered all of our pent-up affection on the little puppy. He responded very slowly to our overtones, and it took a long, long time to get him to wag his tail again. When his enthusiasm was finally restored, we took him again to the operating room and found the marrow in the bone was pink and beautiful again.

I really have no idea what correlation might exist between the color of a puppy’s bone marrow and how that pup is treated, but I do know that the Bible has a lot to say about being kind. This holds true especially in regards to Christianity. Consider the following passages (all from the N.K.J.V., emphasis mine):

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, and longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…(Ephesians 5:22-23)

And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4:32)

Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering, bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. (Colossians 3:12-13)

Love suffers long and is kind…(1 Corinthians 13:4)

Getting more specific, the book of Proverbs has a lot to say about the power of showing kindness in one’s speech. Here are five such verses:

The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life, But violence covers the mouth of the wicked. (Proverbs 10:11)

There is one who speaks like the piercings of a sword, But the tongue of the wise promotes health. (Proverbs 12:18)

A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, But perverseness in it breaks the spirit. (Proverbs 15:4)

Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit. (Proverbs 18:21)

She opens her mouth with wisdom, And on her tongue is the law of kindness. (Proverbs 31:26)

Keep both categories of verses in mind, Christian, as you deal with others. Show kindness in your actions and speak words of kindness that promote life rather than death. Even if you must rebuke someone — and, yes, that can be a way of showing kindness when done rightly (Galatians 2:11-14) — do it with the goal in mind of helping the person and making the situation better. To sum up, be kind in every situation, whatever form of kindness the situation needs. You just never know what effect you might have on someone’s marrow.

Posted in Character, Communication, Counsel, Criticism, Doing Good, Encouragement, Friendship, God's Work, Influence, Ministry, Problems, Reconciliation, The Tongue | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Hop of Faith

Posted on January 8, 2011 by russellmckinney

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:20-21, N.K.J.V.)

I read about a very frustrated pastor who said to his congregation, “I’ve stopped expecting you to make leaps of faith, but it would be nice to see a hop now and then.” I can’t help but wonder if God doesn’t feel the same way about His people. Tell me, Christian, when was the last time you showed Him even a hop of faith, let alone a leap?

For example, think about the expectations you have for this new year. Do they fall under the category of “optimistic” or “pessimistic”? If you answer, “Pessimistic,” your faith in God surely isn’t what it needs to be.

You say, “But Russell, with everything that is going on in the world right now, how could anybody have much faith that this year is going to be a good one? Don’t you keep up with the news?” Well, yes, I do keep up with it, and I’m definitely aware that: gas prices are too high, grocery prices are soaring, the economy is lagging, the housing market is troubling, climate change is going to end civilization as we know it, etc., etc., etc. But here’s the thing: Despite it all, I’m also aware that God continues to reign over all creation from His throne in heaven.

Furthermore, I’m aware that if you are a true Christian, that same God is your loving heavenly FATHER. So, why should you be so doom-and-gloom about this upcoming year? Why not, instead, show God at least a hop of faith to prove that you think He’s going to do great and mighty things in your life this year? My guess is that He is tired of most of us (including Russell Mckinney) underestimating Him.

Posted in Attitude, Current Events, Faith, Fear, God's Love, God's Omnipotence, God's Provision, Grace, Needs, New Year, Problems, Trials, Trusting In God, Worry | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

What Kind of Shape Are You in Spiritually?

Posted on January 7, 2011 by russellmckinney

Christian, perhaps you are one of the hordes of people who have hit the new year full bore with a new diet or workout routine. Well, there’s certainly nothing wrong with that. But even as you try to get yourself into better physical condition, you’d do well to work even harder at getting yourself into better spiritual condition.

So, I ask you, “How is your spiritual condition heading into this new year? How is your prayer life? How is your Bible study? How is your church attendance? How is your giving? How is your witnessing? How is your personal testimony in regards to holy conduct? How is your service to others?” These are important questions.

Remember that the Bible says in 1 Timothy 4:8:

For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come. (N.K.J.V.)

Please understand that I’m not trying to diminish the “little” that bodily exercise profits. Truth be told, many of us need that “little” and a whole lot more! All I’m doing is offering a simple reminder that your spiritual condition is more important than your physical condition. This is something we tend to forget in this world that is obsessed with outward appearances.

Posted in Balance, Bible Study, Church Attendance, Commitment, Dieting, Discipleship, Giving, New Year, Personal Holiness, Priorities, Sanctification, Witnessing | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Holy Spirit: The Secret to Serving Rightly

Posted on January 6, 2011 by russellmckinney

Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. (Romans 8:5, N.I.V.)

Christian, you’ve probably heard that you need to work smarter rather than harder. But have you heard that the secret to you working smarter is you making sure your efforts are ordained by, ordered by, and empowered by God the Holy Spirit? You see, the indwelling Holy Spirit doesn’t just want to be resident in you; He wants to be President in you.

This fact holds true in every realm of your life, including the realm of your Christian service. Show me a Christian who is either “burned out” or “out of heart” in the midst of Christian service, and I’ll show you a Christian who is either doing more than the Holy Spirit is asking or is doing something different than the Holy Spirit is asking. Sadly, both problems are very real. The burned-out Christian does too much, and the out-of-heart Christian does the wrong things.

On the topic of how the Holy Spirit is the secret to right service for the Christian, let me offer an extended quote from Ralph A. Herring, a Southern Baptist minister of a previous generation. In his book, God Being My Helper, he wrote:

The great majority of Christ’s followers today know the importance of service and have sensed something of the joys that may be found in it. Christians readily agree that serving is their one great business as it was their Lord’s, who came “not to be ministered unto, but to minister” (Matt. 20:28). They are busy enough. Indeed, there is ceaseless, almost feverish activity of an undoubtedly well-meaning nature. A study of the announcements in almost any church bulletin reveals many such “activities” – multiplied almost to the breaking point of those who seriously take part in them. The urge to serve is seen in civic clubs and social organizations as well as in the church. But to the thoughtful observer something is wrong. “Where does it get us?” he asks, and, more thoughtfully yet, “Where does it get others?” The painful answer is that so much of what we call “service” proves ineffectual. The tree is full of leaves, but little fruit abides. Unhappily, a great portion of our activity falls under the classification of “dead works.” The truth is that the vitalizing touch of the Holy Spirit is missing from our busy life. In the realm of service he is our supreme helper, and our ministry as well as our devotional life must be energized by him.

With this quote in mind, Christian, let me ask you a simple question: Are all those “good” things you are doing in your attempts at Christian service ordained by, ordered by, and empowered by God the Holy Spirit? It’s a fair question because it’s possible that you are doing some things the Spirit isn’t sanctioning and not doing some things He is sanctioning. And if that is the case, it goes without saying that you need to make the necessary changes. To use Paul’s terminology from our text verse, you need to live in accordance with the Spirit and set your mind on what the Spirit desires. That is the secret to doing Christian service rightly.

Posted in Discernment, Doing Good, God's Guidance, God's Will, God's Work, Individuality, Ministry, Service, Spiritual Gifts, Talents, The Holy Spirit | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Maybe It’s Time to Sharpen Your Blade

Posted on January 5, 2011 by russellmckinney

If the ax is dull, And one does not sharpen the edge, Then he must use more strength; But wisdom brings success. (Ecclesiastes 10:10, N.K.J.V.)

This verse teaches us the value of working smarter rather than harder. Obviously, sharpening the edge of a dull ax blade shows wisdom and makes wood-chopping easier. That’s the specific illustration Solomon uses to make his point. But there’s no doubt that he intended the application of the teaching to cover any and all areas where wisdom is required in life. That includes the area of repentance.

Since we Christians typically think of the start of a new year as a time to recommit ourselves to repentance, let us be sure to spiritually sharpen our blades before we attempt any repentance. And how do we sharpen our blades? First, we solemnly rededicate ourselves to Jesus for the purpose of bringing everything about us under His Lordship. Second, in blunt honesty, we confess our sins to Him and ask Him to forgive those sins. Third, we immerse ourselves afresh and anew in daily prayer, Bible study, and the doing of God’s will.

You see, Christian, if your plan to repent of the lingering sin in your life hinges upon little more than you throwing more effort into not committing the sin, that is akin to you chopping harder without sharpening your ax blade. Consequently, your plan is destined for failure. After all, you’ve “tried harder” to repent of the sin in the past, only to find that increased effort didn’t get the job done, right? Well, what makes you think that taking that same approach in this new year is going to produce different results?

A better plan, one with a greater chance of success, features you sharpening your ax blade spiritually as an indispensable part of you accomplishing your repentance. Instead of simply trying to give up your sin, you also start up with an increased amount of prayer, Bible study, and submission to God’s will. By doing that, the hole that is left in your 24-hour day by you no longer wasting precious time on your sin will be filled with things of the Lord. That’s how you work smarter rather than harder at your repentance. And remember, our text verse doesn’t say that throwing more effort at a task will bring success at performing that task. Instead, it says that wisdom brings that success.

Posted in Addiction, Backsliding, Bible Study, Change, Church Attendance, Commitment, Confession, Dying To Self, God's Will, God's Work, New Year, Personal Holiness, Prayer, Repentance, Sanctification, Scripture, Sin, Submission | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Okay, I’m Back Now

Posted on January 4, 2011 by russellmckinney

Ten months ago I reported that I had decided to take a break from writing this blog. My goal was to finish a second book I had started writing, a book on the subject of prayer. Once I had finished the book, then I’d see whether or not the Lord wanted me to resume the blog. Well, I’m happy to report that I now have a much clearer understanding of what God wants me to do.

Over the past several months, I did get some more work done on the book. However, I eventually reached a point with it where I kind of “hit a wall.” I can’t give you any one reason why that happened. I didn’t go apostate from God. My family isn’t falling apart. My health is fine. The bills are all paid. Things are going better at church than they ever have. And I certainly still have plenty to say in writing. It’s just that I reached a place where the idea of sitting down at my computer to work on the book seemed akin to picking up a ball and chain and lugging it around for a couple of hours. It just wasn’t something that I had a great burden, let alone a desire, to do.

Chapter 9 of my book Straight Talk About God’s Will is entitled “Proving God’s Will.” The foundational text for that chapter is Romans 12:1-2, where the apostle Paul talks about proving out God’s will. In the book, I offer some illustrations in which God revealed His will for situations not by way of a direct word but, instead, by way of a careful process as He worked people through a series of events. I also explain why God sometimes chooses to reveal His will in this lengthy way and what great advantage comes of it. I won’t revisit the entire chapter here, but suffice is to say that over the past several months God has been working me through a process by which He has proved to me that it isn’t His will for me to finish that book on prayer. Instead, I know now that He wants me to start writing the blog again.

You ask, “But what about all that work you put into the book on prayer?” Don’t worry, it won’t go to waste. Somehow at some time or another I’ll turn it all into blog posts. It might be through a blog series on prayer, or it might be through singular posts here and there along the way. But it will happen because, trust me, I want to get the material out there for others to read.

So, in closing, I want to thank all of my faithful readers who stayed patient with me this past year. Naturally, the number of people reading the blog did drop some, but not a day went by when there weren’t some folks stopping by to read something. For that I’m grateful. And I’m hoping that God now begins to use the blog in greater and more prolific ways than He ever has. The good news is that the time away allowed me to get refreshed and revived, and I think that will show up in the posts.

Posted in Choices, God's Will, Obedience, Personal | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

My Last Blog Post (Ever?)

Posted on March 5, 2010 by russellmckinney

Regular readers of this blog have probably noticed that I haven’t been posting much lately. I assure you it’s not because I’ve run out of anything to say. My life and ministry have just become so busy that I find it very hard to write three or so posts a week.

One of the things that makes it hard is that I, like most writers, only have so much writing in me per day. I can’t just sit at a computer hour after hour churning out good material. I’m sure I could write a new post every day if that’s all the writing I had to do. But it’s not. For one thing, I always have new sermons to write. For another, I’ve started writing a second book.

This new book is on the subject of prayer, and I have a good start on it. I’ve completed the introduction and the first chapter. But I’m finding it downright impossible to work on the book and still consistently post blog entries. When I wrote my first book, Straight Talk About God’s Will, I wasn’t writing a blog. That meant that I could get up every morning and spend a couple of hours doing nothing but writing the book. That enabled me to complete the book in about three months.

I’m telling you all this so will understand why I’m going to stop writing the blog. For the next several months, I’m going to devote what writing time and energy I have to my sermons and the book. That’s the only way the book will ever get finished. Once it is finished, then I’ll talk to the Lord and see if He wants me to pick back up with the blog. If He does, that’s what I’ll do. If He doesn’t, this will be my last post. If you are really interested in the blog, all I can tell you is check it again in six months. As of this morning, I can’t even predict myself which way God is going to lead with it.

Just to be honest, I’m not the typical blog writer anyway. Blog posts are supposed to be consistent (at least every other day) and relatively short. I have trouble in both areas. My posts tend to be a bit more sporadic and fairly long. It’s not that I repeat myself in my writing. The problem is that I like to tackle “big” subjects that take a lot of explaining. Many of my posts are somewhat short, but that’s only because I made myself keep them that way. My natural way of writing is to explain and teach in detail, not just offer short little devotions and move on. And that’s not what the majority of readers are looking for in a blog. 

I started writing the blog a year ago at the suggestion of my editor. She felt that it would be a good way for me to gain some web-publicity, get folks interested in my writing, and sell some copies of Straight Talk About God’s Will. I didn’t know what to expect from the new endeavor, but I have to say that the experience has been enjoyable. It’s also been profitable, not in a monetary sense, but in the spiritual help it has provided others. The comments and feedback I’ve received have been so encouraging. There’s no doubt that God has used the blog as a tool to help many people.

Of course, the blog archives will still be available right here, and people will still be able to find posts by using search engines on certain topics. Also, since I doubt that you’ve read every post, I would encourage you to sift through the archives. Just click on a particular category and see what posts pop up. Chances are you’ll find several that you haven’t read. Also, if you feel led, feel free to leave me a comment. I will read it. I’d love to hear how God has used the blog in your life. I’d also greatly appreciate your prayers as I write, appropriately enough, a book on prayer.   

In Ecclesiastes 3:1, the Bible tells us that everything has a season. For the past year, I’ve been in the season of writing a blog. When I finish writing my second book, a new season of blog writing may come around in my life and ministry. Or it may not. Either way, I have no doubts that God knows what He’s doing and I thank you for reading.

Posted in Personal | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

My Weight Loss Goal Has Been Reached

Posted on March 1, 2010 by russellmckinney

Approximately seven weeks ago, on January 13th, I posted a blog entitled “Diet Time Again.” In that blog, I announced that I had begun a diet. I wanted to get my weight down from 201 to 180. I also gave the specifics of my tried and true plan for weight loss.

Well, I’m happy to report that yesterday morning I reached my goal of 180 pounds. Now I can move into maintenance mode and try to stay in the close vacinity of this weight. Several years ago, I had a fair amount of success maintaining my weight after a previous diet. I actually held the weight for a few years before falling off the wagon and starting the upward climb. We’ll see how things go this time.

Ecclesiastes 7:8 says: “The end of a thing is better than its beginning.” Solomon didn’t have diets on his mind when he wrote those words, but he sure could have. When those scale numbers materialized into the number 180 yesterday morning, I felt such a tremendous wave of accomplishment surge through my now skinnier body. That “end” was certainly a lot better than the “beginning” of 201!

Today, there’s no doubt that my “temple of the Holy Spirit” is in better shape than it was at the start of this year. The thirty minutes of exercising I’ve been doing five or six days a week has my muscles toned, my energy level up, and my stamina level increased. I won’t say I’m in the best shape of my life because that title will always be held by my early twenties self. I weighed this same weight then, but didn’t have the bad back, nicked up knee, and touch of arthritis in my right pinkie. I also didn’t have the wear and tear of a lot of years of pastoring and parenting! Still, though, I think I’m doing alright for a guy who’s 43.

To those of you out there who are Christians and need to lose some weight, I want to offer this thought: your dieting will go much better if you will see your weight loss as a spiritual activity. Don’t think, “Oh, this is something that I have to do.” Think instead, “This is something that I need to do to do a better job of maintaining my temple of the Holy Spirit.”

You see, Christian, when you get the focus off you and onto God the Holy Spirit, who literally lives inside your body, that will get your perspective where it needs to be. When weight loss goes from being something you are doing for yourself to being something you are doing for Him, you stand a far greater chance of being successful with that weight loss.

And the great news is, when you lose the weight under that mentality, you will receive eternal rewards as well as the obvious earthly rewards. You won’t just lose weight; you will gain heavenly rewards at the judgment seat of Christ (1 Corinthians 3:11-15; 2 Corinthians 5:9-10). So, that’s like having your cake and eating it too! Oh, wait, that’s not the best comparison is it? Sorry about that.

Posted in Dieting, Heaven, Personal, Reward | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment