The battle for the mind never ceases. There is always something calling for our attention— something that will divert our attention and distract us from our duty. Because we love our family, friends, church, and country we just naturally pay attention to things related to them— we should, but only to an extent. If we aren’t careful we will find ourselves depressed and defeated— focused on the wrong things.

It’s been one of those mornings for me. I made the mistake of reading the news and listening to a talk show host for about 5 minutes. Now here I am with pen in hand, a heavy heart, and a cluttered mind! I’m not over Benghazi yet (will never be) and stuff just keeps piling on— Benghazi, Bundy, Bergdahl, V A scandal, illegal immigration. It never stops and Obama is never held accountable. And it will get worse! The same government that fails to care for our Vets, our heroes, wants to run healthcare for everyone! I don’t know whether to laugh or cry! Can you imagine what a fiasco that will be? We are headed toward disaster— which by the way is exactly what Obama has wanted from the beginning.

Are Americans so dumb as to let this happen or is he so smart that he has hood-winked the majority into believing he is doing good? I’ll let you know when I figure it out. All I know now is that we are headed down a path that no sensible person would take. The blind are leading the blind and we’re all headed for the ditch. One well known talk show host said he wasn’t comfortable calling the president “evil”. Well, unless he is totally ignorant, I am perfectly at ease in doing so. How else would you describe a person who intentionally does what he is doing? No, I couldn’t think of a better word either. As I recently wrote to the Speaker of the House, John Boehner, “I have never been so disappointed in the Republican party! No one, it seems, has the guts to truly stand against the present evil administration. And we have no one standing in the wings ready and able to defeat the Democrats. Whoever they run will win. God give us a hero–like Reagan!” Think about it!

The more I think about it the more I realize that this is not a good way to end this article. If I just leave it there all I’ve done is divert your attention, distract you from duty, and discourage you. So let me turn your attention to where mine should be– to the Word of God. I remind you of what Jehoshaphat said during a crisis long ago, “ O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do : but our eyes are upon thee.”– 2 Chron. 20:1. The key to our survival and success is “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith—- consider him–” (Heb. 12:2-3). Think about Him!

That’s an interesting question that can be applied to a lot of things. It came to my mind this morning as I was thinking about certain people who dropped out of church. In my mind I can still see their faces and hear their voices. Contrary to what they probably think, I miss them. Contrary to what they believe, I love them. I can’t help but wonder– “How is it now?” For whatever reason, you probably left with the belief that you would be better off. How is it now?

It would thrill my soul to see you get back to the place where you once were and watch you enjoy life to the fullest. It is my prayer that God will help you get past the past and give you a glorious future. In all sincerity I say, I hope to see you soon! Please, think about it! Yours in Christ, Bro. Stone

I’m amazed by the way things happen, better yet–by the ways in which God puts things together, so as to test and teach us. Here’s an example. I just started an article that began like this—‘I’m still waiting for someone to write a book entitled ‘The Art Of Ignoring’. That’s something we all need to learn.” My rough draft went on to say, “Have you ever thought about the misery we bring upon ourselves all because we simply refuse to ignore the bad behavior of others? For some reason we feel we must react to it rather than just let it go”.

Well you can probably guess what happened next. Before I even finished the article someone put me to the test. It was a simple thing that probably went unnoticed by everyone but me, but it “ate my lunch”, as the old saying goes. The more I thought about it the angrier I got. I bet you know exactly where I’m coming from. Someone does (or doesn’t do) something that irritates you to no end and you can’t (won’t) forget it. You know it’s silly to let such a little thing ruin your day, but you do it anyway. Take this as a confession— I don’t always do what I’m telling you to do. Guess you could say I’m writing this for myself as much as anybody—I’ve found that to be good therapy! Now that I’ve got a better grip on myself let me try to finish what I started before I unravel again.

As I said, we make ourselves miserable, and often do some really stupid things, because we refuse to ignore the bad things other people do. And when you consider human nature and the rotten condition of the world there’s always something that gets under your skin, something that perturbs you, puts you in a foul mood and robs you of your joy. So, what do we do?

To start with, it would help if we had less pride and more pity— pity for the rude and crude people around us. After all, it’s better to be the victim than the perpetrator! We ought to feel sorry for those who hurt others, because in the long run they are hurting themselves. Our goal should be to help, not hurt them more as though that would make them better. Think about it. Our anger isn’t going to change the other person for the better. So what do we hope to gain by blowing our stack or wallowing in self pity? When we respond in kind to those who are unkind we become their kind. We become just like those who offend us. When we put our anger on display we make matters worse– like pouring gas on a fire. Those who make a mountain out of a mole hill end up creating a rough road for themselves. Don’t do it.

Nealy every pastor has made the mistake of addressing things that offended him from the pulpit. Then later he realizes that it would have been much better had he just ignored the issue, but it’s too late. Every married couple has had a big argument over something that started over a little thing that should have been ignored. And the list goes on. As long as we entertain the prideful attitude that says, “I’m not going to let others walk all over me, take advantage of me, embarrass me, ignore me, etc” we’ll always be bent out of shape about something. We would be much happier and more helpful if we learned to simply ignore them. By “ignore them” I don’t mean to ignore the person so as to hold them at arms length as though we want nothing to do with them, I mean ignore the issue that offended us. As Paul tells us in 1 Cor. 6:7 we ought to “take wrong” and even allow others to defraud us. Rom. 14:19 says, “ Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.” That’s not just good advice, it’s a command. To ignore this command makes us just as guilty as the person who offend us. How then do we have any right to protest? Think about it!

“Mom sent me and said to put it on her bill”, I said to the store owner many long years ago. The problem was that mom didn’t send me, nor tell me to “put it on her bill”—even worse was the fact that, per dad’s orders, mom wasn’t even suppose to have a “bill”– credit was taboo. He knew nothing about the “bill”, but I did– I had heard mom refer to it. Soooo I thought I would use it to my advantage. When mom went to pay her bill she was shocked to discover that it was larger than she remembered– besides, she hadn’t purchased any pop and candy. So the investigation started, and you can guess what happened next. Needless to say, I never put anything else on mom’s bill!

While that sounds like something a child might do, children aren’t the only ones guilty of such foolish behavior. Adults often lie about God. In case you haven’t noticed, God often gets blamed for a lot of things He had nothing to do with. Again and again we hear people say, “God told me to – – -“, or if they want to sound super spiritual, “God led ,me to – – -“, when the truth is that God did no such thing. In many instances what they say clearly contradicts what the Bible says, proof that God didn’t tell them to do it. But in other cases we have no evidence either way, and they know it. They do this to get off the hook. After all, how can we argue with what “God told them” to do? They marry who they please or attend what church they please and explain it away by saying God led them or gave them permission to do so.

The saddest thing about this is that preachers are some of the worst offenders. For instance— there’s a rift in the church, or a larger church makes a better offer and suddenly the pastor says, “God led me to leave”. Or there is a moral failure or a mess created by poor leadership and we hear, “God told me to stay regardless”. Or when things don’t go their way they split the church and start another one– often where it isn’t needed. All this in the name of “God led me”. Really?

Attributing to God what we take upon ourselves to do is a dangerous thing. Trying to justify your sinful selfishness at God’s expense is not something to be taken lightly. Giving yourself permission to do as you please by falsely accusing God is sure to get you into trouble. It’s true that God often does things that seem unreasonable to the natural mind, so we have to be careful about accusing others, but sometimes it’s obvious that He didn’t have anything to do with. Saying God told you or allowed you to do something doesn’t make your wrong right, or your foolish decision wise. You might deceive others, and even yourself, but you’re not fooling God. Telling others you prayed about it and God led you to do something might keep them off your back, but it might cause God to put you on your back– so you will look up!

Our only sure guide and perfect standard is the Word of God. It is according to His word that all our steps are to be ordered. The Holy Spirit never leads us to do anything that is contrary to the Word of God. David said, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD–“(Ps. 37:23). Since that is true, our prayer should be as the Psalmist prayed in Ps. 119:133, “Order my steps in thy word: and let not any iniquity have dominion over me.” Fabricating an excuse to do as you please by blaming God for your foolish decision won’t keep you from falling or prevent you from getting hurt, it will do just the opposite. Think about it!

Every pastor knows the heart break of watching the sheep go astray– he never gets used to it. He pours his soul into their lives trying to help them mature spiritually, then suddenly they’re gone. In many instances he believes they are well-grounded in the faith and he feels he has succeeded, then they drop out. And it happens in more ways than one.

When you talk about people going astray most people think of them quitting church and/or reverting back to their worldly ways, but those aren’t the only ones who go astray. There are others, usually never thought of as having gone astray, who are just as guilty. They still attend some church or a para-church organization, and are even involved in some ministry. They sit on a church pew rather than a bar-stool and sing religious songs rather than honkytonk music, but they are astray nevertheless— miles away from where they ought to be and what they were taught.

One of the most aggravating things about this is that they now do things that would have caused them to ask for their former pastor’s resignation had he done them. They now condone what they once rightly condemned. Here’s some examples— They were taught that the K.J.V. is the best and most reliable version of the Bible, but now they use a modern version that clearly disagrees with it—both can’t be right! They were taught that a church should be independent and unaffiliated  with man-made organizations, but now they are affiliated with some fellowship, convention, association that has no God-given authority. They were taught that missionaries are to be sponsored by a local church, as in the new Testament pattern, but now they are involved in ministries that are not under church authority. They were taught that “Christians should/ should not- – – -, but now they – – -“. Well you get the picture. The list could go on and on. If they were right before they are wrong now. If they were wrong before they ought to go back and apologize to a lot of people that they misled. If they don’t know what’s right they need to find out!

The point is that you don’t have to go back to the lifestyle of a drunk or druggie to have gone astray. When we depart, in any direction, from what the Bible teaches we are astray— regardless of what religious and helpful activities we are engaged in. These people might be very nice, hardworking, helpful people but they are astray. The sinner’s “far country” is not something you can measure in miles, nor determine by direction– it is being out of the will of God period! You are not better than another person because your sin is different than his. All sin is horrible and harmful. And hiding your sin by sitting in a church pew won’t make you holy or keep you safe.

To make matters worse, these people are usually more difficult to reach than those in the bars, etc. The religious nature of their activities comforts them in their rebellion. They soothe their conscience by doing religious things, considering themselves better than the worldly drop-outs who never attend church. Their favorite phrase seems to be, I used to believe – – , but now – -“. And they highly resent an article like this or any suggestion that they might be wrong. Unlike the guy on the bar stool who knows he shouldn’t be there, these folks feel they are fine and they are not about to examine themselves. Some of them, probably more than you think, believe their former pastor is just too old- fashion, out of date, not in touch with the times and they have moved on. Others have simply been misled by another preacher and convinced that you are wrong. And the list of reasons goes on and on.

So what’s a pastor to do? Shall we just watch them leave and let them go without a word concern or counsel? Should we never protest or warn them? Should we decide that it is none of our business and never bring it to their attention? What should we do? While every case is different, we ought to do something—starting with prayer. Beyond that we should love them unconditionally, set a good example, and seek an opportunity to guide them in the right direction. Ranting and railing against them will never bring them back. The truth is they might never come back, but doing as we should gives us and them the best chance.

Don’t give- in and compromise to appease them. Don’t give- up as though they are a hopeless case or a worthless cause. Don’t give- out in your efforts to help them—“your labor is not in vain”. Give it all you’ve got to reach them and help them, then give it all over to God. Do what you can and trust God to do what you can’t. We are “our brother’s keeper” and we ought to be deeply concerned about those who have gone astray. We should do our best to bring them back into sweet communion with Christ. We dare not give up on those for whom Jesus gave all. Think about it!