Topic(s): Evangelism, God's Will

J. Hudson Taylor was a missionary to China. Once when he had received a compliment, Taylor observed, “It seemed to me that God had looked over the whole world to find a man who was weak enough to do His work, and when He at last found me, He said, ‘He is weak enough—he’ll do.’ ”

“When I am weak, then am I strong” —2 Corinthians 12:10

DFTD

Topic(s): Tongue

Australian scientists recently discovered what’s killing thousands of Tasmanian devils on the island state of Tasmania.

The scientists initially believed the deaths were caused by a virus; however, their research ultimately uncovered a rare, fatal cancer. They named it the Devil Facial Tumor Disease, or DFTD. What is strange, according to cytogeneticist Anne-Marie Pearse, is that the abnormalities in the chromosomes of the cancer cells were the same in every tumor. That means the disease began in the mouth of a single, sick devil. That individual facilitated the spread of DFTD by biting its neighbors when squabbling for food, which according to Pearse, is a natural devil behavior: “Devils jaw-wrestle and bite each other a lot, usually in the face and around the mouth, and bits of tumor break off one devil and stick in the wounds of another.”

Over the course of several years, infected devils continued to inflict deadly wounds with their mouths. Consequently, DFTD spread at an alarming rate, ultimately wiping out over 40 percent of the devil population.

A similar fate threatens the church if its members persist in the devilish behavior of wounding their neighbors with their mouths.
—Leadership, Quoted in KneeMail, Mike Benson, editor

“But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.” —Galatians 5:15

The “YMCA,” “YMcA,” or “YMA”?

Topic(s): Priorities

Editor’s note: I do not know the doctrines of the YMCA but suspect that they are not fully in keeping with the New Testament. This article does not endorse the YMCA, nor encourage one to be a member of it, nor follow its doctrine (Galatians 1:6-10; 1 John 4:1). But it is an interesting commentary on our society and it does show how our unknowing culture views the church of Christ, since they would incorrectly put the true church in the same category with any who claim any allegiance to Jesus as the Son of God (cf. Matthew 15:13; 16:18).

I believe that most people realize that we live during a time in which our Christian beliefs do not influence our culture as they once did. Many of us reading this article may be old enough to remember a time when things were different from the way they are today. Many of us can remember a time when . . .

• “Blue laws” existed and stores were closed on Sundays out of deference and respect to the Lord’s day.
• Youth sport leagues would not have played games on Sunday or scheduled practices on Wednesday night because this was time for church and “mid-week Bible study.”
• The Lord’s Prayer was prayed every morning in public school.
• The Ten Commandments were displayed on the walls of our schools.
• Sporting events and graduation began with prayer.
• Christianity was not ridiculed by the media through inept, out-of-touch, hypocritical caricatures of Christians, as is seen in the media today.

One of the latest battlegrounds is the “C” in “YMCA.” The Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) was founded 150 years ago and was intended to provide Bible study and a helping hand to down-and-out men. However, in recent decades, the YMCA has become more known for their family fitness center than for their “Christian” outreach programs. Consequently, the battle is now being waged to remove the “C” from “YMCA.” Just this past week, the YMCA’s national convention met at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center. One of the workshops was titled, “Is Your Y a Big, Small, or No C at All Association?”

One chairman of the YMCA was interviewed by the Tennessean and he said, “I am not a Christian. I respect your religion. But when I see posters and placards on the wall that reflect Christian principles, I feel left out.” Well now, that’s about like a boy saying he feels left out after joining the Girl Scouts!

Friends, we live in a time unlike any other time in the history of our nation’s existence. “Christianity” is being challenged at every turn. From our society’s point of view, Christianity is fine so long as it is kept within the confines of a church building, but don’t let it leak out into the streets, the marketplace, and our daily lives. Paul speaks of those who “did not like to retain God in their knowledge” (Romans 1:28). We are fast becoming that society.

What we need are Christians who are unashamed; Christians who will take Jesus to the streets; Christians who will take Jesus to work and play with them; and Christians who will, through their uncompromising convictions, force our society to acknowledge Christianity, and who will refuse to allow Christianity to be swept aside as an irrelevancy. Will you do your part? - Steve Higginbotham, South Green Street Church of Christ, Glasgow, Kentucky