Gospel kaizen

“Kaizen is like a hotbed that nurtures small and ongoing changes.” ~ Masaaki Imai, (Japanese change and quality management guru)

“Alteration is not always improvement, as the pigeon said when she got out of the net and into the pie.” ~ Charles Spurgeon

When people ask me what my day job is, my reply tends to create more questions than answers. It is kind of a running joke with many of my friends and family that even though I have explained it to them, they still don’t know. I sometimes think it would be far easier to just make something up like Martin Blank, the character John Cusack played in the movie Grosse Point Blank. He goes back to his ten year high school reunion and rather than tell his classmates he is a free lance hitman, he dreams up various responses; “I work for Kentucky Fried Chicken…I sell biscuits and gravy all over the Southland.” Rest assured I am not an international man of mystery or a contract killer.

In simplified terms I work for a contract manufacturing company that builds a myriad of electronics products for both large and small corporations. Still confused? Okay, I work in off shoring and we make products in low cost regions all over the globe. See what I mean? Fine, I am really the body double for Bruce Willis…Admittedly I never envisioned working in this industry and like most teens I day dreamed about being the next Dr. J or as a fall back option replacing Walter Cronkite on the evening news. But I realize that I am where the Lord wants me to be, and my job has allowed me the opportunity to travel the world and experience other cultures. It is fascinating interacting with people from varied world-views and belief systems. This blends well with my interest in Christian Apologetics and my desire to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

My employer has multiple manufacturing facilities in 30 countries and on four continents, and I often visit these sites to either host a customer or for internal meetings. When visiting these facilities we are typically obliged to take a factory tour and listen to the local staff beamingly share what services and processes their site provides. In the manufacturing industry companies are constantly looking for ways to lower their costs and improve output and profitability which is known as Lean manufacturing. Part of Lean is an initiative developed by Japanese car maker Toyota: a continuous improvement process known as Kaizen, which translated means “improvement” or “change for the better.” This has been applied to government, health-care, banking and many other industries. Wikipedia states; “When used in the business sense and applied to the workplace, kaizen refers to activities that continually improve all functions, and involves all employees from the CEO to the assembly line workers. By improving standardized activities and processes, kaizen aims to eliminate waste.”

Part of kaizen is focusing on what is known as 5S; sort, set in order, shine, standardize and sustain. In our factories we typically have posters and signs that focus on these areas and encourage the employees to make suggestions on how we can improve in these functions. I was on a tour this week and while absent-mindedly looking at a 5S poster it dawned on me that in the life of a believer we need to focus on a Gospel Kaizen of continuous improvement through God’s Word. So if I haven’t lost you yet, stick with me and see if you can apply this to your desire to walk in the Gospel.

The first area is Sort (Seiri); distinguish what is needed and not needed. God’s Word is pretty clear that this is something we need to strive for and this can be seen in verses like Hebrews 12:1. “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” Distinguishing what is needed and not needed is also seen in 2 Corinthians 5:17; “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

The second principle is Set in Order/Stabilize (Seiton); a place for everything and everything has its place. What comes to mind is I Corinthians 10:31; “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” When I think about being stabilized Colossians 2:7 also would apply. “Rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.”

Third, Shine or Cleanliness (Seiso); cleaning and inspecting the work place, which needs to be a Gospel focus for us all. Paul exhorts us in Philippians 4:8; “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Many more verses apply to this principle but another could be Romans 12:2; “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

The fourth process is Standardize (Seiketsu); share established standards and make standards obvious. The emphasis of being ready to give an answer found in 1 Peter 3:15 points not only to knowing the Gospel but also making it obvious by sharing it with others. Matthew 5:16 commands us to let our light shine before men so God can be glorified and also underscores the need to know the truth and make it obvious. Without a doubt Paul’s letter to the Galatians points this out in chapter 1 when he tells them that the Gospel is not a man-made message and that we need to get it right and proclaim nothing else or the consequences are dire indeed.

The final process is Sustain the discipline or self-discipline (Shitsuke) which is what we are all called to do. The Pauline epistles are filled with imagery of pressing toward the mark, walking worthy, disciplining ourselves through the power of the Holy Spirit to live spirit-filled and spirit-controlled lives. Paul talks about at length in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 when he writes; “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.”

Long before any efficiency experts or continuous improvement guru “developed” these ideas, God had the perfect solution in mind to change for the better the human condition. This improvement and perfection of our condition is found in none other than the person of Jesus Christ. Have you let the Gospel kaizen your life and are you continuing day by day to let it do so? Are you and I as committed to our spiritual continuous improvement (sanctification) as God is? Fortunately our lack of commitment does not change God’s commitment to us and that is what Philippians 1:6 is reminding us. He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it in spite of our unfaithfulness. He fully committed Himself to us on the cross, can we dare give less?

The truth of the Gospel can be seen anywhere we look, even on a mundane plant tour.

“But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.” ~ 2 Thessalonians 2:13

It takes a village

“I count myself one of the number of those who write as they learn and learn as they write.” ~ John Calvin citing Augustine of Hippo

“A nominal Christian is content with proving the way of salvation by a crucified Redeemer. But the true Christian loves it, delight in it, glories in it, and shudders at the very thought of glorying in anything else…Let all your joys flow from the contemplation of His cross.” ~ Charles Simeon

In 1996, then First Lady Hilary Clinton caused no small stir when she released a book titled “It Takes a Village” which focused on child rearing and the impact, both good and bad, that the entire community has in the development of a child. I will admit I have never read the book and my exposure to it was more through sound bites from the network and cable news talking heads, as well as the righteous indignation of the Conservative right. From what I have observed from either side of the aisle I am not in any hurry to turn over the rearing of my children to people who are in desperate need of their own personal life coach. Even though Senator Clinton and I don’t see eye-to-eye on politics, economics or social issues, I have to say that I am not so sure she was necessarily far off in this pronouncement. Truth be told we likely would differ on the size, breadth and members of the “community” that should be involved in the lives of children, as well as the boundaries of said community. Even though we disagree on the means and the resources that should be applied to raising a child, I can applaud her effort for making people stop and think about how they go about raising their children and drawing focus on their development and welfare.

The title of the book has been attributed to an African proverb but its origin is up for some dispute. The complete proverb is “It takes a village to raise a child” and per Wikipedia “It originated from the Nigerian Igbo culture and proverb "Ora na azu nwa" which means it takes the community/village to raise a child. The Igbo's also name their children "Nwa ora" which means child of the community. It has been in existence in Africa for centuries.” This saying has been found among other African tribes throughout the continent but one could argue that it doesn’t have its origin just in Africa as many ancient societies across many ethnic groups practiced this same type of philosophy. I am not the first to say that globally we have lost a sense of community and looking out for one another. As time passes we grow more and more isolated from one another, and the positive impact that extended families and the local community can have on both child and adult continues to wane.

One of the distinct character traits of Americans is rugged individualism, and that individual nature was part of the aversion to Senator Clinton’s book. We all know what is best for our family and the hint of government involvement in the rearing of our children will make the vast majority of Americans dig their heels in. In the book “Hidden Worldviews” co-authored by Steve Wilkens and Mark L. Sanford they look at various cultural aspects that have subtly infiltrated the church and individualism is first on their list. They state; “individualism…is the belief that the individual is the primary reality and that our understanding of the universe and lifestyle should be centered in oneself.” They further define it by stating “individuals strive for autonomy and self-sufficiency, relying on others only as they contribute to one’s personal pursuits. Family, community and society are, at best, secondary considerations.” How this plays out in the church is that we twist the words of John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address and say “ask not what you can do for your church community; ask what your church and fellow believers do for you.” Wilkens and Sanford point out that individualism is spied in the church when we use the often-heard statements like, “My faith is between God and me,” “My religion is a personal thing,” or “I believe in God. I don’t need to go to church.” They go on to say that individualism can be taken to such an extreme it ceases to have any hint of Christian truth.

I am by nature a contemplative sort and I spend probably too much time in a self-imposed isolation. I enjoy the sanctity of my home, and being a creature of habit I don’t like my routine interrupted. I readily admit this is not a good thing. Recently I have been thinking about friendship and community and how has my faith in Jesus Christ impacted this. My church’s motto is “The Gospel Changes Everything” and I think I only want it to change SOMEthings rather than EVERYthing. But if I believe this wholeheartedly and live it out, then compartmentalizing any area is an affront to the sacrifice of Christ and supreme rudeness (dare I say sin) to my heavenly Father. The reoccurring thought that runs through my mind is if what I demonstrate is no different than what those not part of a Gospel-believing community experience, then why would they want what I have? I write to learn and much of what I post here are simply fingers pointing back at myself rather than meant to hurl accusations against others.

If you study the 1^st Century Christian church this embodiment of a caring and interconnected community is what set them apart from the rest of society and put the world on notice that they were not just some other empty religion being trotted out to add to the pantheon of gods. In Acts 2:42-47 Luke provides a glimpse into the community of the 1^st Century church. In verses 46 and 47 he talks about one of the characteristics of true revival as being a desire to spend time in worship as a unified body of believers. And in Acts 4:32-37 they gave of what they had for the mutual benefit of one another. Time and society has changed and the political and economic landscape is far different today, so I am not so focused on the financial benevolence that they shared. But one thing we can share is spiritual encouragement and how God is working in our lives as a means to revive the members of our Christian community. That is truly a priceless commodity that will bring dividends in this life and the next.

I often wonder if the modern Christian has collectively allowed and accepted a certain level of superficiality creep into our church and in our personal walk with Christ. We can all admit to a certain lack of soberness and seriousness about living out of faith on a daily basis. Please don’t get me wrong; I am interested in your children and grandchildren and the funny things they say and do. I am interested in your take on what is going on in society and the political landscape. Where you went and what you may have seen can be very entertaining. I enjoy second-guessing the coaching decisions, play calling and outcome of various professional games, the merits of the DH and the nuances of the West Coast offense. I love to laugh and I have been accused of having a sense of humor. But what I am truly interested in, encouraged by and excited about is what God is doing in your life. How has the Gospel changed you and how is it continuing to change you? How has both the mundane and the amazing taught you a timeless truth about God and the Gospel? What passage of scripture has made an impact on you this week and how did that strengthen or change you? What Christian or non-Christian books are you reading and what spiritual lesson did that reading drive home to you? How did a particular song or movie bring the greatness of God into view for you? I really want to know, and I want my Christian community to share these things to help me raise my children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. What conversations we gravitate towards and avoid can reveal where we have fixed our hearts. That is a sobering thought.

I do not want to give the wrong impression and have you think I am ambivalent about Aunt Millie and her pending gall bladder surgery or that I do not want to hear your sorrow over a co-worker or relative with cancer. There are things that we should share with one another and be concerned about. I do want to bear the burdens of my fellow Christians, and rejoice when you rejoice and weep with those that weep (Roman 12:15.) But we cannot let it just stop there. I am also not advocating a forced or manufactured spirituality or pietistic discussion to be seen of men. But we cannot live our lives simply giving lip service to I Corinthians 10:31. We are members of a great community with a great heritage and we are commanded to edify the saints. It takes a village to build up a Christian. We are God’s children and we need to foster a community that is focused on bringing honor and glory to God in everything we say and do.

I love spending time with new believers because the Gospel is so rich and new to them that they are like a child that finds something new and amazing in things we often take for granted. The sad truth for anyone that has been a follower of Christ for any length of time is that familiarity breeds contempt. We become comfortably numb or even bored with the beauty of life in Christ. This is tragedy of epic proportions. We forget that the author of Hebrews charges us to continually offer up a sacrifice of praise or let the fruit of our lips acknowledge His name. The verse that follows in Hebrews 13:16 is what we should all be doing; do good, forget not and communicate! I admit at times it can feel awkward to start a spiritual conversation because we are typically worried about either sounding sanctimonious or worse yet, making ourselves vulnerable to others by admitting our shortcomings. If we are motivated by bringing honor and praise to God and showing gratitude for how He is working in our life eventually that feeling will pass. Who knows, maybe it will be contagious and your friends and acquaintances will jump in and share their heart. Even if they don’t you can never know how or when your encouragement, exhortation or testimony will later bear fruit in their lives.

We have not been called to isolation and the Gospel is not meant to be lived out in a vacuum. Wilkins and Sanford state it quite eloquently when examining Paul’s words in Romans 12; “Our examination of life should not just be an individual endeavor but needs to occur within the context of a community.” What are we collectively doing to build up and edify the saints? How are we “raising” both young and old in our Christian community? Will we be marked by soberness or superficiality? It takes a village…

“So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.” ~ Romans 14:19

“But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.” ~ I Thessalonians 5:8-11

Aesop & Son

“The beginning of men's rebellion against God was, and is, the lack of a thankful heart.” ~ Francis Schaeffer

“do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?” ~ Romans 2:4

When I was very young my morning ritual was to wake up early and tromp down to our basement family room and turn on the TV to watch cartoons before everyone else got up. At the risk of giving away my age I will confess that one show I enjoyed were re-runs of the Rocky and Bullwinkle show. For the uninitiated; Rocky is a flying squirrel and Bullwinkle is a moose and they were always trying to avoid the evil machinations of Boris Badenov and his cohort Natasha. Some of the episodes of the show live on even now on YouTube and of course on DVD. The appeal of the show is that it also featured short cartoon vignettes that included Fractured Fairy Tales, Peabody’s Improbable History, Dudley Do-Right and Aesop & Son.

What children didn’t realize was that they were being taught history or moral values through the medium of humor and celluloid. I enjoyed them all and remember fondly both the fairy tales and the fables. The Aesop & Son short would start with father (Aesop) chiseling his name on a Greek column in a dignified manner, and to his chagrin his son would run in with a jackhammer and add “and Son”. The typical set up was that Aesop would try to teach his son a life lesson but at the end of the story his son would subvert the fable’s moral with a bad pun.

Many of us have heard or read some of Aesop’s Fables or know stories attributed to him like the Ant and the Grasshopper or the Tortoise and the Hare. Most view these tales as stories for children; however, for the early Greeks these fables were aimed at an adult audience. According to Wikipedia the Greek fable "was a technique of criticism and persuasion, which by its indirectness might avoid giving offense, while at the same time making a powerful impression by its artistry. It was especially valuable to the weak as a weapon against the powerful." Aesop was highly regarded by the Greeks and his work was quoted by none other than Socrates. I decided to try my hand at a Aesop-like fable but in the end it may seem more like a Fractured Fairy Tale. As a good friend always says “You can’t make stuff like this up.”

A young man is brought into this world and he is the apple of his father’s eye. His father is a well known philanthropist and is loved and respected by many. Throughout his youth his father makes repeated attempts, both subtle and grand, to demonstrate his love for his son and strengthen his relationship with the boy. At times the father very openly demonstrates his love, care and affection for his son, yet the boy takes these overtures for granted or even ignores them completely. Other times the father quietly orchestrates behind the scenes wonderful and joyous events in this young man’s life.

The father has many servants but his relationship with them is very unique because he treats them more like sons and daughters. Many of these servants attempt to tell this young man about his father, and share with him how they have been personally changed and blessed by his benevolence. The young man thinks they are fools or, worse yet, ignorant and misinformed. The boy is unmoved and unimpressed by their testimonials on behalf of his father and even ignores a biography written about his father that is a world-wide best seller.

The son has no interest in learning about his father’s history, character or benevolence. The boy is unmoved and disinterested and even though the father’s love is constant, the young man refuses to reciprocate. More often than not the boy blames his father for situations and predicaments he has created for himself, and curses his father for not getting him out of his troubles. The son both consciously and unconsciously knows what his father deems appropriate behavior, yet he ignores this and even at times makes it a point to flaunt his behavior as a means to openly scorn his father.

Occasionally the son shows up at his father’s house on special days like his birthday. Typically this is only to sooth his conscience or to keep up appearances. Other times he shows up because his wife has guilt-tripped him into going. More often it is because he wants to manipulate the father to help with his latest scheme or to help him out of a jam. Eventually the day comes when the boy completely puts the father out of his mind and refuses to darken the door of his house, even on holidays. Through it all the father continues to love his son and wait patiently for him.

One day many years later tragedy strikes the boy and he needs emergency surgery he cannot afford. He calls on his father to pay for the procedure and miraculously the father provides and the boy makes a full recovery. The father hopes this life experience may be an opening for reconciliation and a chance for a deeper and more meaningful relationship. Yet the young man does not offer any thanks, refuses to speak to his father and still will not visit him at his house.

The son often hears stories of how his father has provided for his staff of servants or has done a wonderful philanthropic work somewhere in the world. The father uses all his resources to rescue the poor, outcast and undeserving. But the son rails against his father whenever he reads a story in the paper or hears in the news about sickness, war and natural disaster. He uses this as a justification for ignoring his father and remaining estranged from him. He rationalizes that if his father is as wonderful as everyone says he is, then of course he should have used his vast resources to solve this problem, all the while writing off that all of these instances were the result of bad choices by others and not his father’s doing.

Years pass and the father still longs for a relationship with his son and subtly and quietly provides and protects his son behind the scenes. The son again experiences a tragedy but this time when he calls, the father does not answer and the son suffers a devastating loss. The father knows that his son simply wants his resources but not a relationship, so he hopes going it alone will wake up his son. The son is irate and he is filled with anger and malice toward his father. How dare his father not answer! He blames his father for his troubles and at that point vows to never have anything more to do with him.

This fable sounds implausible and a little extreme yet this is how each and every of us view or treat our Heavenly Father. He seeks to be known and have a personal relationship with us, yet we ignore Him and take Him for granted. He showers us with blessing; both overtly and subtly, yet we fail to acknowledge the Giver of all good things. This phenomenon is evident in all men, no matter their “spiritual” condition. In his Trilogy of books, author and philosopher Francis Schaeffer points to that fact that we all want to rummage through God’s pockets and pull out the gems of His character we like and ignore the rest. We fail to see Him or acknowledge Him in both the amazing and mundane but His love remains constant and never changing. We blame Him for our troubles or use any excuse we can find to question His love and affection for us and the world. We want the benefits of a relationship without the commitment or responsibility that may come with it. He is the genie in the lamp who needs to be at our beck and call in the hour of our need, then forgotten again when the trial passes.

We rarely, if ever talk to Him in prayer, and even when we do it is a laundry list of wants and not a meaningful, loving or heartfelt discussion. We cannot be bothered to visit his house, yet when the chips are down and we face possible tragedy and despair we think that God should pull out all the stops and give it to us NOW! After all God is love and we deserve His favor no matter what. If we are callously ignored and repeatedly taken advantage of in our human relationships we typically jettison that "user". Yet we irrationally and illogically think God should cater to our every whim no matter how we treat Him.

Ask yourself this question; would you give everything to someone who has treated you in the same manner? God gave His only begotten Son, what have you given Him in return? God desired a relationship with you and I so much that He paid dearly for it. How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?

“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.” ~ I John 3:1

“But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” ~ Romans 5:8

“If God exists and we are made in his image we can have real meaning, and we can have real knowledge through what he has communicated to us.” ~ Francis Schaeffer

Friendship redefined

“Two ways to define a true friend: someone who says ‘hi’ every time they see you (even on bad days), and someone who agrees to show up on moving day - and shows up.” ~ Barry Parham (author/satirist)

A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. ~ Proverbs 18:24

It’s the Christmas season so by now many of you have pulled out those VHS tapes and DVD’s to watch your favorite holiday movies. One Christmas classic is “A Christmas Story” which chronicles the fictional life of Ralphie Parker as he plots and schemes the receipt of a young boy’s ultimate gift; a Red Rider BB gun with a compass in the stock.

Throughout the movie we see Ralphie and his little brother Randy dealing with the typical challenges of childhood, food that you would rather not eat, waiting in long lines, being trussed up like a turkey in winter clothes and of course dealing with the school yard bullies; Scott Farkas and his toady Grover Dill. Ralphie has two friends named Flick and Schwartz, but I am not sure if I would agree that they are true friends. For example; when Ralphie utters an expletive that he just happened to hear from his father, rather than admit it he chooses to blame his friend Schwartz, who subsequently gets punished by his mother. Another scene is when he and Schwartz triple dog dare Flick to stick his tongue to the frozen flag pole. Then the bell ring and they leave him stuck there and head back to class. Finally, when one of the trio is getting beaten up by the yellow-eyed Scott Farkas, the others bid a hasty retreat to avoid similar treatment. With friends like these you might need that BB gun to survive.

C.S. Lewis laments in “Mere Christianity” how words over time have lost their significance and true meaning. He cited how the word gentleman once referred to someone of land, means and status as well as dignity and culture. He went on to say that the term had lost its original meaning and was applied indiscriminately to any and all manner of men no matter their deportment. Lewis used this example to point out how the word Christian had lost its power and significance. Words do have meaning, and if we choose to use them in a trite and thoughtless manner we eventually relegate them to the scrap heap of meaninglessness. In our current culture it appears the very same thing has happened to the word friend and how we apply it.

The internet and social networking has played a part in dumbing down the word friend. An individual can have 500 or more virtual “friends” but when the chips are down, how many of those individuals will be there for us in a real and tangible way? What are these “friends” doing for you to grow you spiritually? The author of Proverbs, inspired by the Holy Spirit penned “a man of many companions will come to ruin” and that is even truer today than in ages past. If someone is your virtual friend doesn’t that in turn obligate them to a meaningful and at times costly investment in your real world? Being called or considered a friend should require someone a little more that a superficial or trite interaction with one another. Maybe I am alone in this comment, but being my friend should mean that we see each other in public that I extend the courteously of more than just a mono-syllabic grunt of acknowledgment when I see you. When we ask each other how are you doing, we really want to know the answer to that question and that we are in fact listening and logging the response.

Do we view friendship as a right or a privilege? Maybe part of the problem stems from the fact we treat our “friends” in the same manner as we treat our relationship with God. We talk to them when we feel like it, view it way too casually or only when it is convenient. We don’t show much gratitude or display a certain fickleness toward them if they don’t meet our perceived needs or expectations. Or maybe it is a one-dimensional or one-sided relationship where we are just looking for a sympathetic ear to vent all of our complaints and frustrations, but don’t want to listen to what they have to say. Our friendship with God and being called His friend is neither earned nor deserved, and we need to count it a distinct privilege. If man is created in the image of God and every human has infinite value in His eyes, then this needs to translate into a radical redefinition of how we treat friends and friendship.

If you are a follower of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and you believe that the Gospel changes everything (II Corinthians 5:17) then doesn’t that include how you define and view friendship? How do we define friendship and if the Bible tells us that we have a friend in Jesus and that we are friends of God, how does that translate in how we treat and view our friends? Recently I was logging onto Twitter and a tweet by an individual that goes by the moniker “Freddy Amazing” caught my eye. He posted this acrostic for friend; (F)ights for you (R)espects you, (I)nvolve you, (E)ncourage you, (N)eed you and (S)ave you. From a human perspective that is not a bad definition, but apply that to how Jesus Christ is our friend. He fought for us by paying the penalty for our sins. He involves us by giving us the privilege to bring Him honor and glory and tell others about Him. He encourages us by His example and through His love, mercy and grace. He needs us to live out our faith so the world will see our good works and glorify the Father. And He provides a way to save us through His perfect sacrifice and solve our greatest problem.

We have a certain level of community as a body of believers, but that does not necessarily translate into true friendship. We have the Gospel in common which should lead to a deeper and more meaningful kinship, but we can all attest to the fact that this is not necessarily the case. My intent is not to write an exhaustive treatise on the subject of friends and friendship. But I am trying to challenge myself and anyone who stumbles upon this post to reclaim the biblical example of friendship.

In the book “101 Hymn Stories” Kenneth W. Osbeck tells the story of hymn writer Joseph Scriven who wrote one of the most beloved but simple hymns titled “What a Friend We Have in Jesus.” Scriven was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1819 to a prosperous family. Scriven’s faith in Jesus Christ estranged him from his family and the night before he was to wed his fiancé drowned. He immigrated to Canada and from that point on his goal in life was to live out the Sermon on the Mount, (Matthew 5). He gave freely of his possessions and never refused anyone who needed his help. He spent a great deal of time sawing wood for the poor and widowed in the community. He penned the lyrics to the hymn as a means of encouragement to his mother who had fallen gravely ill back in Dublin. Scriven never meant for the poem to be published, but it is so personal and relevant to the needs of many that it is typically one of the first hymns missionaries teach to new converts. This hymn was borne out of personal tragedy, estrangement and living out the Gospel in real life.

What a friend we have in Jesus,
All our sins and grief’s to bear!
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer!
Oh, what peace we often forfeit,
Oh, what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer!

Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged—
Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful,
Who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness;
Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy-laden,
Cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge—
Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?
Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In His arms He’ll take and shield thee,
Thou wilt find a solace there.

Take the time to examine your relationships and ponder how the Gospel has redefined friendship and how you view your friends. And while we are at it, we also should ask ourselves how we view and treat the best friend we have in this life; Jesus Christ.

"Fake friends are like shadows, always near you at your brightest moments, but no where to be seen at your darkest hours." ~ Anon

“A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” ~ Proverbs 17:17