Many years ago a highly respected minister in our Fellowship died. The funeral was in the church he pastored in Kokomo. Several pastors loaded into a van and drove there together. By the time we arrived, I was really sick. I attended the funeral service and could barely get back out to the van. I later discovered I was passing a kidney stone. I have had the same thing happen since then, but at the time I didn’t know what I was dealing with. Very excruciating.

We can sometimes feel the same kind of excruciating pain as the mountain in our lives begins to shift out of the way. Spiritual battles being won can be very painful. We can lose sleep while God is holding the lion’s mouths shut or shaking open our prison doors. It can be pretty intense while you’re waiting for Goliath to fall or the flood to subside. And it can be really stinky as you’re vomited out of the belly of the great fish. Deliverance takes a battle and battles can leave scars. But that’s the nature of spiritual victories.

And just as a mother suffers greatly until she delivers her child, so there can be great pain when we are delivered from strongholds. Christians who aren’t aware of the nature of breakthroughs often give up under the pressure. Put on the full armor and hang on. God is about to deliver you. Feel the burn.

DeKalb Central Schools closed today. That means there are a lot of kids home with nothing to do. Snow days were always a delight to me as a kid, because I got to do what I wanted to do instead of what the teacher wanted me to do. And what I wanted to do was exactly nothin’. If it was too cold to go outside, I just wasted my time in front of the television set or piddle around with my toys. I never had a project I could busy myself with.

These days, I cherish a day at home when I can catch up on a few projects (which now number in the dozens). Here’s a couple I’d love to get into today, if I could: Clean off my workbench in the garage, finish a family history book I’m writing for Anita’s family, get my tax stuff around, scan in a hundred family history photos on Anita’s side, and finish a book I’m reading on The Battle of the Bulge.

But, a little free time can be invaluable in relationships. If you’re stuck at home due to inclement weather, look for ways to interact with your family. Caring about one another is not only a biblical mandate for believers, but should be a natural desire of families together. Do something together.

When I was a child we had neighborhood baseball games in the vacant lot behind our house. Most of the neighborhood kids were older than I. When dividing into teams we used the “Ring the dishrag inside out”, “One potato, two potato, three potato, four”, or the “Eenie, Meanie Miney Moe” methods. I was always one of the last ones chosen, which was tough on my ego. I wasn’t the most athletic kid, was younger, and tended to be the day dreamer.

But that memory gives new meaning to Romans 15:7: “Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God“.

In other words, it glorifies the nature of God that we accept all the people that are slower or weaker than ourselves. That is the model Christ gives us. The measure of grace you’ve received from Christ should be the measure of grace that we extent to others.

As we begin our focus on involvement groups and teams at New Hope, we need to put this principle of acceptance to work. God will test it with someone we really won’t like. Pass the test of acceptance and you give praise to God.

So, the Pope said that Donald Trump is not a Christian because of his views on the Wall on the Mexican boarder. That’s pretty bold for a religious leader to feel that he can pass judgment on another based on his/her political views. I wonder if he thought that through.

Did he consider that a Christian is a spiritual condition, not a political position? You can say its not a Christian thing to do, but the Pope judged his soul based on his actions. Questionable.

Did he consider that as the Pontiff, he is speaking on behalf of all Catholics worldwide? Sometimes a leader needs to bite his tongue.

Did he consider that Donald Trump has a huge political following and usually fiercely attacks anyone who gets in his way? Watch out for backlash.

Did he consider that Jesus told us not to judge, lest we be judged?

And did he consider that, except for Israel, all geographic/political lines are man-made, not God assigned?

The Pope may be correct about Trump’s Christianity. Let’s see how God responds to this…

There are five churches in Waterloo (one just outside). The pastors of these different churches have a good working relationship during the Good Friday Community Service. Each church has its own emphasis, its own style, and its own traditions. And there are areas where we flat out disagree on some aspects of interpreting the scripture. And none of us will back down on those distinctives. But, for harmony’s sake, we do not take issue on those, but focus upon what we have in common.

Over the years, I’ve had opportunity to work with stubborn spiritual leaders who demanded their way like a spoiled brat. They were no fun to work with. And those who were charismatic were some of the worst, because they hid their selfishness behind spiritual garb. But, I love working with others who try to work together toward an end that glorifies Jesus.

And that’s how it should be in the Lord’s church. We should look for opportunities to set our own goals aside and adopt Jesus’ goals. We must unload our selves and take Jesus’ burden upon our shoulders. And that happens in companionship.

Paul taught us, “May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus” (Romans 15:5).

Anita and I watched an interesting movie Monday evening called ‘Little Boy’. Its the story of a boy whose father was drafted into World War 2 and becomes a Prisoner of War of the Japanese in the Philippines. The boy gets advice from a Catholic priest on what he can do to see his father come back home. One of his assignments is to help an enemy, which is in the form of a local Japanese immigrant that everyone hates because of his race. The boy goes against everyone in their small town to do the good turn that would help set his father free.

I won’t give away the plot in case any of you want to see the film on Netflix, but it has some twists that held our attention. The boy saw loving his enemy as the key to freeing his father, so against all odds and in the face of all his friends, he acted out his kindness to the Japanese man.

How do you treat your enemies? How do you treat your brothers and sisters? Paul taught us this principle: “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves” (Romans 12:10). In the family of God, we are in this together.