Here’s a fun fact: 2014 marks the 75th anniversary since the creation of the superhero Batman. As a tribute, I want to devote this blog installment and the next one to stating certain lessons (in no particular order) that Batman teaches us. There are more, but these are the highlights of things that I’ve picked up on being a fan of this superhero for many, many years.
#1: Possess strong ethics
If Batman teaches us anything it’s that it is vitally important to have ethics. Batman chooses to never take a life. This choice has consequences: for one thing, you are destined to fight the same villains over and over again. For instance, some have raised the question why Batman doesn’t just kill his archenemy the Joker. After all, the Joker has murdered numerous people, and yet, Batman never takes the Joker’s life. Why?
Batman himself answers this in the animated film: “Batman: Under the Red Hood”. I’m paraphrasing but essentially he believes that to end the Joker’s life would be the easy way out. And furthermore, if he were to do so, it would change him to the point that Batman would begin to murder any of his enemies. Thus he chooses to never cross that line. He chooses to have strong ethics.
#2: Be committed to your life mission
Bruce Wayne, alias Batman, is an extraordinary man with many exceptional gifts. I agree with Arthur Ashe who states in his book “God on the Streets of Gotham” that Bruce could turn some heads at the latest NFL combine and then go and win big on the game show “Jeopardy”. Ashe nails it. I would add that Bruce could make a name for himself as an escape artist. Or with his brilliant mind, he could thrive as a lawyer.
But the simple fact of the matter is this: none of these avenues are his life's mission. Bruce Wayne knew what his life mission would be when his parents were senselessly murdered right in front of him when he was a young boy. He vowed to spend the rest of his life bringing any and all criminals to justice. His life mission is to protect the citizens of Gotham, and as he put it in the film, “Batman Forever” to “ensure what happened to me would never happen to anyone else again.”
#3: Surround yourself with allies
I personally don’t understand why Batman has the reputation for being a loner. As I see it, Batman is not a loner. Granted, he may be selective with who he chooses as his friends and allies, but he is not loner. Consider the fact that he has allies like his faithful butler, Alfred, Robin, Nightwing, Batgirl, Commissioner Gordon, Superman and the rest of the members of the Justice League, Lucius Fox (who was an invaluable ally in the Christian Bale Batman movies), and on and on we could go with the list.
Most of the people that I’ve just mentioned know that Bruce Wayne is Batman. He could go to any of them and share the struggles of his life with them, if he chose. By contrast, Spider-Man (another great superhero) in most storylines has to deal with his double life all alone. Yes, he also has friends and family, but he can’t confide his escapades as Spider-Man with them. This makes his superhero duties twice as challenging.
To be continued!
Kevin
Friday, August 15, 2014
Monday, August 11, 2014
A critically important reminder
I love this verse from Revelation 3; Jesus says, “These are the words of Him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What He opens no one can shut, and what He shuts no one can open” (verse 7). What incredible encouragement to consider that God, in His sovereignty, closes doors that I can’t open, and He opens doors I can’t close! Let me cite a few examples.
In February of this year, God opened a door that no one could close regarding a new small group Bible study. It was a door of opportunity to attend a group that would discuss the sermon from the weekend services, and then hold each other up in prayer. I remember saying when this door first opened that God presented this opportunity to me on a silver platter. I have subsequently obtained such a blessing to be a part of this group.
For another example, back in June, I celebrated my ten year anniversary at the current Chick-fil-A store that I’ve been employed. I’ll be candid with you: while I love Chick-fil-A, I have to admit that it hasn’t always been fun and games. There have been times, over these years, where I’ve wanted to move on to something else. But God, who closes doors that no one can open, hasn’t opened another door of opportunity in this regard. Therefore, I know I’m to remain where I am, and that I’m supposed to serve willingly and joyfully.
When I think of a closed door in my life, I think of how, at age 33, God has never opened the door of marriage to me. There were relationships with the opposite sex that I thought might lead to marriage, but they didn’t. Certainly this doesn’t mean that God will never open the door, but to this point, the door of marriage has remained closed.
There are more examples that I could give. I could mention the opportunity to obtain a college degree; or I could talk about the fact that God opened a door for this blog to exist in the first place, but you get the point. I’m simply stating that God is always working. He says, “What I open no one can shut, and what I shut no one can open.”
Kevin
In February of this year, God opened a door that no one could close regarding a new small group Bible study. It was a door of opportunity to attend a group that would discuss the sermon from the weekend services, and then hold each other up in prayer. I remember saying when this door first opened that God presented this opportunity to me on a silver platter. I have subsequently obtained such a blessing to be a part of this group.
For another example, back in June, I celebrated my ten year anniversary at the current Chick-fil-A store that I’ve been employed. I’ll be candid with you: while I love Chick-fil-A, I have to admit that it hasn’t always been fun and games. There have been times, over these years, where I’ve wanted to move on to something else. But God, who closes doors that no one can open, hasn’t opened another door of opportunity in this regard. Therefore, I know I’m to remain where I am, and that I’m supposed to serve willingly and joyfully.
When I think of a closed door in my life, I think of how, at age 33, God has never opened the door of marriage to me. There were relationships with the opposite sex that I thought might lead to marriage, but they didn’t. Certainly this doesn’t mean that God will never open the door, but to this point, the door of marriage has remained closed.
There are more examples that I could give. I could mention the opportunity to obtain a college degree; or I could talk about the fact that God opened a door for this blog to exist in the first place, but you get the point. I’m simply stating that God is always working. He says, “What I open no one can shut, and what I shut no one can open.”
Kevin
Monday, August 4, 2014
"By the grace of God, I am what I am"
A few blog entries back, I was talking about the number of tears that we cry. I thought about that notion again yesterday, as I was in tears at church. I was actually crying tears of joy as I was remembering how God, by His wonderful grace, transformed me. I was recollecting my story of how I became a Christian.
I was a six year old boy who went to a Billy Graham crusade with his parents and brother. God used the words of Mr. Graham; I was feeling the conviction from the Holy Spirit. I knew that I was a sinner who was in need of a Savior. I knew I needed to respond and put my faith and trust in Jesus Christ. So I stated to my parents that I needed to go forward during the altar call. I yielded my life to God that day.
Here I am all these years later. I’m far from perfect. I falter and stumble. I struggle with the sin that so easily besets me (old King James Version rendering of Hebrews 12:1), but there’s no doubt in my mind that God changed me that day. He changed my entire identity. The Apostle Paul wrote, “By the grace of God I am what I am” (1 Corinthians 15:10). I echo that for myself.
I've previously referenced a pastor by the name of Rick Ferguson. Rick went to Heaven back in 2002, but he left a strong Christian legacy behind. He was saved at a young age as I was. When you become a Christian at a young age, you don’t have a dramatic conversion story to tell.
For example, earlier I mentioned the Apostle Paul. This was a man who persecuted the church, dragged Christians into prison, and murdered them. He wanted to stamp out and destroy Christianity. But God ambushed him, and completely revolutionized his life; his allegiance shifted from wanting to destroy Christianity to being an avid voice for Christianity. That’s a dramatic conversion!
This idea of not having lived much of a life before coming to Christ concerned Rick for a time, but then he shared that God showed him that when you come to Jesus at a young age, God doesn’t just save you from who you were; He saves you from what you would have become. On more than one occasion Rick mentioned this notion in his sermons and it really resonated with me because it’s true. I shudder to think about the life that I might be living today, if I didn’t become a Christian. I prefer to thank God for His grace, love, and kindness in my life. Praise God for the gift of salvation!
Kevin
I was a six year old boy who went to a Billy Graham crusade with his parents and brother. God used the words of Mr. Graham; I was feeling the conviction from the Holy Spirit. I knew that I was a sinner who was in need of a Savior. I knew I needed to respond and put my faith and trust in Jesus Christ. So I stated to my parents that I needed to go forward during the altar call. I yielded my life to God that day.
Here I am all these years later. I’m far from perfect. I falter and stumble. I struggle with the sin that so easily besets me (old King James Version rendering of Hebrews 12:1), but there’s no doubt in my mind that God changed me that day. He changed my entire identity. The Apostle Paul wrote, “By the grace of God I am what I am” (1 Corinthians 15:10). I echo that for myself.
I've previously referenced a pastor by the name of Rick Ferguson. Rick went to Heaven back in 2002, but he left a strong Christian legacy behind. He was saved at a young age as I was. When you become a Christian at a young age, you don’t have a dramatic conversion story to tell.
For example, earlier I mentioned the Apostle Paul. This was a man who persecuted the church, dragged Christians into prison, and murdered them. He wanted to stamp out and destroy Christianity. But God ambushed him, and completely revolutionized his life; his allegiance shifted from wanting to destroy Christianity to being an avid voice for Christianity. That’s a dramatic conversion!
This idea of not having lived much of a life before coming to Christ concerned Rick for a time, but then he shared that God showed him that when you come to Jesus at a young age, God doesn’t just save you from who you were; He saves you from what you would have become. On more than one occasion Rick mentioned this notion in his sermons and it really resonated with me because it’s true. I shudder to think about the life that I might be living today, if I didn’t become a Christian. I prefer to thank God for His grace, love, and kindness in my life. Praise God for the gift of salvation!
Kevin
Monday, July 28, 2014
Heaven: a place of bliss and happiness
There’s a popular misconception today. It’s the idea that Heaven is a dull, monotonous, boring place. That all anyone ever does in Heaven is float around in a clear blue sky, sitting on top of a thin cloud, with wings and a halo, strumming a harp for all of eternity. This kind of existence would indeed be boring, but this is not an accurate picture of Heaven. The fact of the matter is this: Heaven is anything but boring.
I found an interesting resource from the website got questions.org. In an article on what we will be doing in Heaven (I’ve included the link below), the author writes, “In Luke 23:43, Jesus declared, “Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.” The word Jesus used for “paradise” is paradeisos which means “a park, that is, (specifically) an Eden (place of future happiness, paradise)”... The point is that Jesus picked and used the word for “a park.” Not just any park but “the paradise of God” or park of God (Revelation 2:7) which for us will be a place of future happiness. Does this sound like a boring place? When you think of a park, do you think of boredom?”
http://www.gotquestions.org/doing-in-Heaven.html
Furthermore, I don’t have to tell you that the burdens of this life can be overwhelming. There's pain, heartache, sorrow, broken dreams, and intense suffering. One of the main reasons I'm blogging about this today is because I'm feeling the heavy weight of the trials of the world in my own life. That’s why these words from Revelation 21 are so encouraging:
“And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (verses 3 and 4). No mourning or pain will exist in Heaven; only bliss and happiness.
I’m sure many of you are saying, “Sign me up for that.” Well, the fact is, not everyone will go to Heaven; only those who have a right relationship with God, through Jesus Christ. John 3:36 reads, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life” (one could substitute the word “Heaven” here in place of “life”). To be candid with you, I don’t particularly enjoy concluding the blog installment in this way. I would have preferred to have ended on the high note of the previous paragraph, but I have to tell you the truth, no matter how difficult or unpopular.
The Bible says if you want to see Heaven, you have to believe in Jesus. That is, you have to put your faith, trust, and confidence in Him alone to save you and take you to Heaven one day. If you haven’t done this, if to this point you have rejected Jesus, I urge you to choose to believe in Him today.
Kevin
(John 3:16)
I found an interesting resource from the website got questions.org. In an article on what we will be doing in Heaven (I’ve included the link below), the author writes, “In Luke 23:43, Jesus declared, “Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.” The word Jesus used for “paradise” is paradeisos which means “a park, that is, (specifically) an Eden (place of future happiness, paradise)”... The point is that Jesus picked and used the word for “a park.” Not just any park but “the paradise of God” or park of God (Revelation 2:7) which for us will be a place of future happiness. Does this sound like a boring place? When you think of a park, do you think of boredom?”
http://www.gotquestions.org/doing-in-Heaven.html
Furthermore, I don’t have to tell you that the burdens of this life can be overwhelming. There's pain, heartache, sorrow, broken dreams, and intense suffering. One of the main reasons I'm blogging about this today is because I'm feeling the heavy weight of the trials of the world in my own life. That’s why these words from Revelation 21 are so encouraging:
“And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (verses 3 and 4). No mourning or pain will exist in Heaven; only bliss and happiness.
I’m sure many of you are saying, “Sign me up for that.” Well, the fact is, not everyone will go to Heaven; only those who have a right relationship with God, through Jesus Christ. John 3:36 reads, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life” (one could substitute the word “Heaven” here in place of “life”). To be candid with you, I don’t particularly enjoy concluding the blog installment in this way. I would have preferred to have ended on the high note of the previous paragraph, but I have to tell you the truth, no matter how difficult or unpopular.
The Bible says if you want to see Heaven, you have to believe in Jesus. That is, you have to put your faith, trust, and confidence in Him alone to save you and take you to Heaven one day. If you haven’t done this, if to this point you have rejected Jesus, I urge you to choose to believe in Him today.
Kevin
(John 3:16)
Monday, July 7, 2014
God is aware of every shed tear
Have you ever stopped and thought about just how many tears we cry? We cry during times of heartache, pain, and tragedy. We cry tears of joy during weddings, graduations, or even during certain moments in a movie or TV show. We cry tears of longing, expressing a strong desire of how much we wish something would happen, but it hasn’t. Or how about when we laugh for so long that it actually causes us to cry? My point is we all cry. This is not something for which we should be ashamed; it is a gift that God has given us.
It is astonishing to consider that the God of the universe is intimately aware of every single tear. Psalm 56:8 is a precious verse to me; it reads, “You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book” (NLT). The more I think about this, the more I marvel at God’s attention to this detail. For example, I always cry at that magnificent end of "It's a Wonderful Life." God recorded those tears in His book titled "The Tally of Kevin Bauer's Tears" (or whatever He calls it).
This is so encouraging to contemplate. God loves you and me so much that He is intimately aware with everything that happens to us; nothing escapes His notice. He knows the exact number of hairs on our heads (Matthew 10:30). He knows every word that we say; He knows every thought that we think; He sees each time we laugh; He sees when we cry. God isn’t ignorant of even the most minuscule occurrences of the day.
Kevin
It is astonishing to consider that the God of the universe is intimately aware of every single tear. Psalm 56:8 is a precious verse to me; it reads, “You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book” (NLT). The more I think about this, the more I marvel at God’s attention to this detail. For example, I always cry at that magnificent end of "It's a Wonderful Life." God recorded those tears in His book titled "The Tally of Kevin Bauer's Tears" (or whatever He calls it).
This is so encouraging to contemplate. God loves you and me so much that He is intimately aware with everything that happens to us; nothing escapes His notice. He knows the exact number of hairs on our heads (Matthew 10:30). He knows every word that we say; He knows every thought that we think; He sees each time we laugh; He sees when we cry. God isn’t ignorant of even the most minuscule occurrences of the day.
Kevin
Thursday, July 3, 2014
The power of Biblical context
My pastor, Bill Oudemolen, often says if you take a Bible verse out of its context it can very easily become a pretext. This is a wise statement. There is one Bible verse I want to focus on today that is often yanked out of its context and has become a very popular pretext.
The verse I’m referring to is Philippians 4:13. This verse reads, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (NKJV). This is often quoted as alleged proof that God will help us accomplish any goal, no matter how inherently selfish. As if the verse actually said: “I can accomplish anything, no matter how seemingly impossible, because Christ will give me the necessary power to complete it.” That’s not what the verse says and this is quite a precarious road to be on.
For example, a student wants to ace a test, and they neglected to study for it, can they still get that “A” just by quoting “I can do all things through Christ”? Or a person is about to have an important job interview, can they just quote Philippians 4:13 and be assured that God will give them that job? Or someone wants to be like Tony Stark and create a special suit and become a real life “Iron Man” who fights crime; should they go for it because the Bible says “I can do all things through Christ”? (Granted, that last one is wacky, but I purposely gave an odd example to help prove my point.)
All of these examples display a fundamental misinterpretation of what God is actually trying to teach us here. Philippians 4:13 is not a proof text where God promises He will endow us with supernatural power to complete every ambition or dream that we have. So what does it mean, then? Once again, context is crucial, so let’s go back a few verses.
The second half of Philippians 4:11 reads, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.” Verse 12: “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” And the reader waits expectantly to be informed of what this “secret” of being content is. Interestingly, the next verse is our verse of focus for today; Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
Therefore, in context, it’s crystal clear that the main point here is this: no matter what happens to us in life, we can experience contentment. “Whether I live in abundance or poverty, pleasure or heartache, bliss or agony,” Paul says, “I can do all of these things, through Christ. He is the one who gives me the daily strength I need to live whatever life God has called me to, and to do so with contentment.”
Kevin
The verse I’m referring to is Philippians 4:13. This verse reads, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (NKJV). This is often quoted as alleged proof that God will help us accomplish any goal, no matter how inherently selfish. As if the verse actually said: “I can accomplish anything, no matter how seemingly impossible, because Christ will give me the necessary power to complete it.” That’s not what the verse says and this is quite a precarious road to be on.
For example, a student wants to ace a test, and they neglected to study for it, can they still get that “A” just by quoting “I can do all things through Christ”? Or a person is about to have an important job interview, can they just quote Philippians 4:13 and be assured that God will give them that job? Or someone wants to be like Tony Stark and create a special suit and become a real life “Iron Man” who fights crime; should they go for it because the Bible says “I can do all things through Christ”? (Granted, that last one is wacky, but I purposely gave an odd example to help prove my point.)
All of these examples display a fundamental misinterpretation of what God is actually trying to teach us here. Philippians 4:13 is not a proof text where God promises He will endow us with supernatural power to complete every ambition or dream that we have. So what does it mean, then? Once again, context is crucial, so let’s go back a few verses.
The second half of Philippians 4:11 reads, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.” Verse 12: “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” And the reader waits expectantly to be informed of what this “secret” of being content is. Interestingly, the next verse is our verse of focus for today; Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
Therefore, in context, it’s crystal clear that the main point here is this: no matter what happens to us in life, we can experience contentment. “Whether I live in abundance or poverty, pleasure or heartache, bliss or agony,” Paul says, “I can do all of these things, through Christ. He is the one who gives me the daily strength I need to live whatever life God has called me to, and to do so with contentment.”
Kevin
Sunday, June 29, 2014
Imitate God by living a life of love
The other day, I watched a Christian movie that I hadn’t seen for a while entitled “Another Perfect Stranger”. This is a sequel to “The Perfect Stranger”, a film where a lawyer is invited to dinner with someone who claimed to be Jesus Christ Himself. She goes along with it and ends up having a fascinating conversation with the man.
“Another Perfect Stranger” is the sequel. It features the lawyer’s daughter, Sarah. Sarah ends up meeting the same man that her mother had met, the guy claiming to be Jesus, only she doesn’t know it’s the same man.
There was a line of dialogue in a particular scene that grabbed my attention. In one scene, Sarah and the man (who at this point had introduced himself as “Yesh”) are on an airplane chatting with one another. They got on the subject of what real Christianity is. “Yesh” put it this way: “It’s letting Him love other people through you. It’s knowing you are forgiven. It’s knowing that you’re accepted; no matter what you always have a special place in God’s heart.”
That whole quotation is worth contemplating. To know you are forgiven, accepted, and that you have a special place in God’s heart is such an invaluable thought, but my mind has been riveted on that first part of the quote: real Christianity is “letting Him [God] love other people through you.”
Today is my birthday. I find myself wanting to renew my commitment to displaying God’s love to other people through my actions. Ephesians 5:1-2 puts it this way: “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” What a passage and what a challenge! Imitate God by living a life of love; my blog title today and one of the goals of my life.
I want to be a vessel that demonstrates God’s love to others through my deeds. I want to be a reflection to others that there is a God who loves humanity deeply, fervently, and passionately. In short, as the day of my birth is celebrated, I want to deflect the attention away from myself and put it on the Lord. Focus instead on the fact that God is great, majestic, powerful, and He loves you and me “with an everlasting love” (Jeremiah 31:3).
Kevin
“Another Perfect Stranger” is the sequel. It features the lawyer’s daughter, Sarah. Sarah ends up meeting the same man that her mother had met, the guy claiming to be Jesus, only she doesn’t know it’s the same man.
There was a line of dialogue in a particular scene that grabbed my attention. In one scene, Sarah and the man (who at this point had introduced himself as “Yesh”) are on an airplane chatting with one another. They got on the subject of what real Christianity is. “Yesh” put it this way: “It’s letting Him love other people through you. It’s knowing you are forgiven. It’s knowing that you’re accepted; no matter what you always have a special place in God’s heart.”
That whole quotation is worth contemplating. To know you are forgiven, accepted, and that you have a special place in God’s heart is such an invaluable thought, but my mind has been riveted on that first part of the quote: real Christianity is “letting Him [God] love other people through you.”
Today is my birthday. I find myself wanting to renew my commitment to displaying God’s love to other people through my actions. Ephesians 5:1-2 puts it this way: “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” What a passage and what a challenge! Imitate God by living a life of love; my blog title today and one of the goals of my life.
I want to be a vessel that demonstrates God’s love to others through my deeds. I want to be a reflection to others that there is a God who loves humanity deeply, fervently, and passionately. In short, as the day of my birth is celebrated, I want to deflect the attention away from myself and put it on the Lord. Focus instead on the fact that God is great, majestic, powerful, and He loves you and me “with an everlasting love” (Jeremiah 31:3).
Kevin
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