One Thing

“Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven. For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.” Matthew 18:18-20

The secret weapon is a game changer. When Popeye is down and out, when all hope seems to be lost and Bluto is certainly going to defeat him, we all wait for the secret weapon – his spinach. The spinach changes everything; once it is eaten, the victory is secured.

Aladdin is trapped in a cave left to die. He tries to escape but it’s hopeless until he discovers a lamp. The lamp is a game changer because using it gives access to a genie who can transcend all human limitations.

The church has a secret weapon that changes everything: the Father’s response to agreeing prayer. We see it in Acts 2: The church had been in unified prayer for ten days until the Father responded with “a mighty rushing wind” and “tongues of fire” which so empowered the early church that 3,000 were saved in one day.

We see it in Acts 4: The persecuted church gathered and in agreeing prayer asked the Father to “do signs and wonders by Your holy Servant, Jesus.” The response: “After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.” (Acts 4:31) Abundant grace was released and signs and wonders were performed (Acts 5:12) while multitudes were saved. (Acts 5:14) Heaven invaded earth in response to agreeing prayer by the church.

But my favorite example of the secret weapon is found in Acts 16. Paul and Silas were put in prison and at the midnight hour began to pray and worship together. Here’s the Father’s response, “Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose.” (Acts 16:26) Natural earthquakes destroy, they don’t open doors and release people from chains. Were Paul and Silas asking the Father for everyone’s chains to fall off? Unlikely. This is about the extravagance of a God who is able “to do above and beyond all we can think” (Ephesians 3:20) in response to agreeing prayer.

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be satisfied.” Matthew 5:6

I love stories. In the morning I read the Bible and serious devotionals, but at night before bed, I’m usually reading or sometimes watching a story that inspires me to love righteousness.

A story is a powerful tool (Jesus used them all the time) for good or for evil, so I try to be careful. I have found that some books, shows, and movies actually mock righteousness and empower wickedness; and leave me sad, confused, or even despairing if I embraced their message. I sometimes lament having wasted time on such stories and always promise to use more discernment in the future.

A few years ago I gave an illustration from The Horse Whisperer and said it was a good movie and a horrible book. What did I mean by that?

In the book, a woman and the man who healed her horse are drawn to each other, have an affair, and she ends up leaving her husband and her daughter because she has found “true love.” The message: Humans are flawed and messy and certainly not to be blamed if their “heart” leads them to break their wedding vows. Horrible.

In the movie, the woman and the man who healed her horse are also drawn to each other and are tempted to be adulterous. Yet they resist the temptation, and in the end she returns to her husband and daughter. We empathize with flawed, emotional human beings, because we relate to them, and then we celebrate when they do what’s right in spite of their flaws. It strengthens us and feeds our hunger for righteousness. We too are flawed but we can still do what is right!

I stop reading a book or watching a show when I have no one to cheer for (hopefully sooner rather than later!). I expect people to be flawed because I can’t relate to a perfect character. However, I like someone who is trying to do what is right. Someone who is rising above their own comfort, sorrow, or selfish desires to courageously do what is right. Just because something appeals to our love of humor, action, or mystery doesn’t make it “good” art. Art that we participate in should inspire our love for righteousness and our hatred for wickedness, not dampen it.