Monday, August 14, 2017

561 - Spiritual Eclipse


Spirituality Column No. 561
August 15, 2017
Common Christianity / Uncommon Commentary

Spiritual Eclipse
By Bob Walters

"… And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith.” Hebrews 12:1-2
 
A young man I know well was on a mission trip in Toronto a few years ago.
 
The small crew (four adults and a half-dozen college kids) was there for five days to assist the promotion of a church “plant” (start-up) prior to its first service.  The mission was to canvass nearby neighborhoods, pass the word, talk to people, distribute literature, be nice, chat-up Jesus, etc.  It was your basic PR run for the Lord.
 
No, it wasn’t cleansing lepers in Africa, but the mission trip yielded a stunning opportunity that not only clarified the young man’s faith in Christ but also led his heart to embrace a life mission that continues to this day.  The opportunity opened up in a friendly, impromptu conversation with the lead Imam at a large mosque – not far from the new church – in the very cosmopolitan setting of globally multi-cultural Toronto.
 
Warmly welcomed into the mosque as visitors, the Christian mission team chatted some about what they were doing in Toronto, but mainly visited the mosque to “reach-out” in the existing faith community.  You know how the Bible says in several places, Old Testament and New, “God will give you the words to say”?  Well, as the missions group prepared to depart, the Imam directly posed an offer to the young man to learn more about Muhammad, the Qur’an and to submit to Allah in faith.
 
The young man, always polite as that is his nature, surprised himself by the calm but powerful words that proceeded from his mouth.  Pleasantly, not harshly, he replied to the Imam: “I already have Jesus; what more could I ever want?  Jesus loves me, He died for me, He came back and still lives for me.  He forgave my sin, conquered my death, and I’ve accepted his offer of a loving, personal relationship with Him in this life.  After that, I will sit with Jesus next to God in heaven forever.” And on that irenic yet direct note, the group pleasantly departed the mosque.  No offense, Allah.
 
I just love that story.  The young man today lives as a Christian among peaceful Muslims in the Middle East, an endeavor I think is well-described as “lampstand” mission work: respecting restrictive local laws but not hiding his faith under a basket.
 
Anyway, I relate that story – “I already have Jesus; what more could I ever want?” – to make this point about what’s happening to “light” this week in America.
 
Every charlatan spiritualist, New Ager, prophesy purveyor, pagan mystic, crystal reader, astrological seer, media scare-monger and, sadly, more than a few sincere but misguided biblical eschatologists, are shilling multiple false gods and omens about next Monday’s total solar eclipse.  But hear this: nothing’s there to worship, fear or impute.
 
Yes, God hung the Sun and the moon and what a grand show is the cosmos He created – eclipses included.  But leave it at that; don’t be suckered by meaningless, spiritless, quasi-faith “event” canards that eclipse truth and add darkness, not light.
 
Enjoy the astronomical show, but persevere in the light.  We already have Jesus.
 
Walters (rlwcom@aol.com) notes there will be 224 eclipses this century.

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