Bowel Wars

“Jedi Master Skywalker, this is Rebel Base, we have just received a communiqué from the Supreme Ewok Ruler that Imperial forces have set up an enemy fortress on their home planet of Endor.”
“Roger that, Rebel Base. Gold Leader, Red Leader, chart a course for Endor. We’re going in. Vader and his men won’t be taking control of that planet today. Not as long as I’m in charge.”
“Master Skywalker, this is Gold Leader, I have a visual lock on the Imperial stronghold, awaiting orders to blast.”
“Red Leader here, I’m locked on target and prepared to blast on command.”
“Gold Leader, Red Leader; fire at will, fire at will! May the force be with you.”
“Master Skywalker, Rebel Base here. We are receiving distress signals from Rebels stationed on the planet of Endor. Cease fire! I repeat, cease firing!”
“Skywalker to Base, what’s going on here?”
“Rebel Base here, it appears that we have been seriously deceived! That communiqué did not in fact come from the Ewoks it came from the Empire itself! We have mistakenly killed hundreds of Rebel troops with…friendly fire!”
“NOOOOOOOOO!”
This is a layman’s illustration of what it’s like to have Crohns Disease. The planet of Endor represents more than a foot of my small bowel. Skywalker and his forces represent my overactive immune system that innocently, and yet callously attacks my Endor, er I mean ileum, er I mean small bowel. You see, my immune system views my small bowel as an enemy that needs to be taken out. And apparently I have a pretty darn good immune system because it’s doing quite a number on my bowel. At this point in time, my Endor is suffering severe casualties, and there’s nothing left for it to do, but evacuate. I spend countless hours in the evacuation chamber hoping that I remembered to purchase the extra soft variety of T.P. and not the extra strong variety.
It pains me to think that one part of my being would cruelly attack another part of my being. I don’t know what might happen if I failed to take my medications to suppress my immune system. It may very well try to take over the world! But that’s how it is when we willfully allow sin in our lives. It’s like giving Satan an open invitation to set up housekeeping in your soul. Only he’s not a good houseguest. He won’t be making brownies for you. He’ll set up traps for you to fall into…traps that you can’t get out of on your own.
So don’t give Satan any opportunity to create a foothold in your life. Fill your soul with Jesus, and he will keep your “Rebel Base” safe from all harm. In the mean time I’ll go take more meds to suppress this “Imperialistic” immune system of mine. I wouldn’t want to put an end to the world as we know it!

Strike While The Iron Is Hot

YOUTH DRAMA, if ever two words belonged together, these are the two words. No one group of individuals has more drama in their lives than today’s youth. Every Sunday evening I meet with a group of youth for the purpose of edifying the Father through the art of dramatic interpretation in church. In other words, we kick it old school style for God on the small stage. (You’ve got to stay up on the language if you’re going to hang with the young people.) Why youth, why drama? It’s a secret, so don’t tell them, but when they memorize the skits, they’re actually hiding Biblical truths and sometimes actual scripture in their hearts, and they don’t even realize it! This is how it happens…5:00 rolls around; I’m sitting at the back of a large classroom when the students begin to wander in from youth choir. Some of the kids are still immersed in worship, performing their own brand of uber-exaggerated solos to the songs they just went over in choir. I offer congrats to the two girls that performed the salt and light skit for the youth group that morning. It went off without a hitch. One box of table salt…68 cents, flashlight $3.00…hiding the Word of God in the hearts of two teenagers and them being able to share it with about 40 more of their peers…priceless. By the end of the evening we’ve, for the most part, learned the Roman’s Road plan of salvation, (a valuable tool for any college bound individual) and an entire chapter of Psalms set to percussion accompaniment. Why youth drama? The answer is simple…”Teach me your ways, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name,” Psalm 86:11. We must strike while the iron is hot. We must cast our lines while the fish are biting. We must reach our youth for Christ before the world reaches them first.

Please Pass The Salt

I just finished writing a Christian sketch over Matthew 5:13-16. I call it "Please Pass The Salt". The skit begins with a girl pouring a box of salt onto a plate of food. Her friend comes in and warns her of the dangers of using too much salt on her food. The girl promptly informs her friend that she read in the Bible that "we are the salt of the earth, but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be made salty? It's good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men." The friend goes on to tell her that Jesus wants Christians to influence society just like salt influences food. But sometimes I find myself acting like the girl in the skit. I feel like I'm losing my saltiness, I should be thrown out and trampled underfoot. How did I get this way? I'm a Christian, I'm not supposed to lose my saltiness. But then I have to ask myself, what am I doing to impact others for Christ, and I have to admit; sometimes it's not very much. So what can we do, obviously eating a box of salt won't help. Then God revealed this verse to me, "You know the message God sent, tell the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all." Acts 10:36. This is the answer, GO, TELL, GOOD NEWS, PEACE, JESUS CHRIST! It's all in there! The skit ends with the girl abandoning her plate of salt and reaching for a flashlight. Her friend questions her about the flashlight and she goes on to tell her that she obviously never read Matthew 5:14-16 where Jesus says we are the light of the world. What about you. Do you need to have the salt passed your way?