Joy in the Crapshoot

Seems about right.

There’s a rather obscure made-for-TV Muppets movie called  The Muppets at Walt Disney World. In it, the Muppets visit—wait for it—Walt Disney World. My Mom must have recorded it on these black boxy things called VHS tapes back in the day because it was in our video library. Although it’s largely a big commercial for Disney World, I enjoyed it. It had some good jokes and some nice songs and Charles Grodin (y’know...from Beethoven) working with the Muppets again (which he had first done in the film The Great Muppet Caper).

And it had Waldorf and Statler. You know those great old guys. They’re like royalty amongst hecklers. And they’re at it again even at Disney World:

Why these guys didn't take over for Siskel and Ebert,
I have no idea.

“Hey, this place is pretty great.”

“Yeah. It’s clean, it’s fun...there’s nothing to complain about.”

“I hate it when there’s nothing to complain about!”

“Boo!”

“Hiss!”

“Close this dump down!”

 (For the Muppet purists out there, I should point out that this exchange is reproduced from memory, as I cannot find a YouTube clip of it. I assure you I got the gist right.)

Ever know anyone like Waldorf and Statler? Who aren’t happy unless they’re complaining? Oh, gosh I have.

Ugh. I just know this guy's gonna start whining.

Of course, sometimes whining and grumbling makes sense, doesn’t it?

Pain has not been kind to my family. We joke that my wife, at twenty-seven, has the physical problems of a much older woman: blood clot, back problems, hip pain and more. She has permanent stress fractures from her time in Army (after being misdiagnosed by Army docs) and a host of painful issues stemming from that.

I’m not in the same boat as her, but apparently the fact that I’ve already had two kidney stones by the age of thirty is kinda rare. The first one just hung out and caused pain so I needed laser surgery to take care of it. Laser surgery! Cool, huh? But in May of last year I got to step up to the daily pain club. I still don’t have a

good diagnosis, and the pain is in sort of a sensitive, manly area that we cannot discuss in mixed company, but it comes to visit on a daily basis. You learn to live with it.

My vacation home away from home.

We went on vacation last week, to Maranatha Bible and Missionary Conference on the shores of Lake Michigan. It’s sort of a special place for me, because I’ve been going every year for the past 26 years, with very little interruption. I got to sort of grow up there - one week a year anyway - and I’d love for my girls to have the chance to do the same. There’s good Bible teaching, great kids programming, wonderful praise and worship, exciting stories from missionaries about how God is working around the world and even an Olympic-sized pool on the beach! It’s a neat place.

Having been there so many years, I can assure you that it is a great deal more fun if you don’t have a boil. Yep, I said a boil. Now, I know what you’re thinking: wasn’t Job afflicted with boils? Yes, he was. Now, that doesn’t mean you should assume that I was also afflicted with a boil because of my rampant godliness (and humility) but I’m sure you started to wonder.

I could barely walk when I went into a med center near the resort and sitting was very painful too. I had heard of lancing boils in some context but had no idea if medical technology had advanced beyond what

Okay - this was too perfect not to share!

sounds like the most painful treatment imaginable. Spoiler alert: it hasn’t.

I didn’t get to see Lake Michigan again this vacation or attend the rest of the Bible teaching sessions. It was kind of a bummer. The good news is that I already had pain meds prescribed from my daily pain so all the doctor at the med center could do was prescribe...more portent pain meds! I’m glad I’m the sort of guy who brings along his XBox 360 to a place like Maranatha because all I could really do at that point was lie down on my side. Yes, I like to play video games on my vacation...but I honestly didn’t want to play them nearly that much!

But you know what? I’m good. Oh sure, I’m still disappointed, mostly that I didn’t get to play more down at the beach with my kids, or with my niece and nephew who came up for a few days while I was out of commission. I don’t get to see them very much. But at some point, as God’s been working on me and molding me more and more into the man He created me to be, He has taught me to choose joy above all.

Oh, I’m certainly not perfect on this score (or, um, any others). A few years ago, I encountered threats to my family and marriage that shook my smile in a way that I think very few could. But that was an extreme circumstance, and normal course for me now—despite the daily pain, despite the hiccups of life, despite living in a fallen world and having relationships with fallen people—is to genuinely enjoy life.

I wrote a skit called The Deep End when we were touring with our family drama ministry. In it, the character

This is pretty similar to my outfit for the skit.
I wore it better, too.

I played decided to deliberately take leave of his senses because he cannot make sense of a coworker who lives his life by the following mantra:

God’s still on His throne and I’m still going to heaven. As long as that’s true, nothing’s really that bad.

My character admires his coworker as he sticks to his philosophy through life’s bumps and bruises: car trouble and all the rest. It’s after the coworker’s wife dies after a lengthy battle with cancer that my character decided to embrace the crazy. He simply could not understand what in the world could give his coworker such peace, an underlying joy that persisted even as he grieved the death of his wife.

But we can know such a joy.

In fact, as believers, I would go further and say that we are commanded to choose joy in our lives:

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice” (Phil. 4:4).

I love how Paul anticipates his reader’s reaction, thinking it must be a typo or something. So he repeats himself. Not only is joy a fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22), listed right after love, but the supernatural joy of the Lord gives us strength (Neh. 8:10). Joy is important. And in hard times? James instructs us to choose joy even (or especially?) in the face of trials and difficulties (James 1:2-3).

Yeah I'm a Christian. What's it to you!?

And yet I feel that joylessness is one of those little “acceptable sins” that we tend to ignore or even rationalize as believers. We’ve all met curmudgeonly Christians who seem to have chronic bad attitudes. Heck, you may be one of those grumpy bear believers.

None of us are perfect. But for a believer to remain joyless does indicate a problem. I’ve heard from some who believe it’s pointless to teach about the Fruit of the Spirit because the Holy Spirit will automatically fill the believer with those nine traits—but I’ve got too much experience to agree. We can block the Spirit from working in certain areas in our lives, stubbornly holding on to pieces of ourselves. I know this because I’ve done it. Ever heard Augustine’s famous prayer? “Grant me chastity and continence, but not yet.”

Yes, I realize that women can struggle with lust.
Sorry about the stumbling block, ladies.

Even as we relinquish control to God, as we learn how to die to ourselves daily, we do not become perfect overnight. Each of us struggle with different things. I used to struggle with joy. For the most part, I don’t anymore. You may not struggle with lust (like, you might be female or something) but have a hard time with patience.

But I feel the need for us to call a spade, as they say, a spade. Anyway, someone would get offended if we call it a hoe or something. I think the healthiest attitude we can take as believers is to avoid justifying any sin, whether it seems like a “big one” or not. If I have a problem area in my life, I need to pray about it and take steps to be more godly, trusting God to take me the rest of the way.

So let’s out joylessness as a sin. Perhaps it doesn’t seem as nefarious as murder, adultery or being Canadian (one of those might not be a sin, actually), but it’s a mistake to turn the proverbial blind eye. Not only does sin separate us from God, but it inhibits our ability to be salt and light in this world—and a lack of joy can most assuredly be a problem.

Clearly having the time of his nine lives.

Plus, learn from my personal experience: Grumpiness isn’t something to stubbornly cling to! It’s making you miserable! Grant me chastity but not yet makes sense—sex can be lots of fun!—but I fail to see the appeal in holding on to a bad attitude. Of course, I also fail to see the appeal in smoking but millions of other people clearly do. Also: Honey Boo-Boo.

You’ve probably read this quote by Charles Swindoll before. At least, I hope you have. I hope everyone has. But you can read it again. It’s golden:

The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.

Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude... I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it.

And so it is with you... we are in charge of our attitudes.

Man, that’s a great quote. Every trial or temptation that comes our way is a chance to grow spiritually. You can only develop patience by being in situations where your natural inclination is to be impatient, such as driving or renewing your driver’s license. Similarly, you can only learn to be full of joy by being in situations

Between developing patience and not going on a homicidal
rampage, government agencies are a cesspool of spiritual growth.

where many people would grumble and complain. Since God wants you to be full of joy, that means that complainers should expect plenty of crummy circumstances which are God-sent opportunities to grow closer to Him. I’d rather get the point and maybe not have to go through the lessons so often!

Paul struggled with some sort of pain or burden. He begged God to take it away, but God said no. He was teaching a powerful lesson: “My grace sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9). That’s such a profound lesson, isn’t it worth the pain?

Worth it.

If you enjoy my books or even my blog posts, thank the daily pain I’ve endured for the past fourteen months or so. The pain kept me up at night and, instead of tossing and turning, I took to writing. Staying up in a quiet house to write turned out to be the perfect solution for me. I’ve been working on The Savvy Demon’s Guide to Godly Living that whole time and maybe that seems like a long time, but it’s a big book. I can’t imagine how long it would have taken me to finish if God hadn’t sent me this pain.

So, Lord, thank You for this pain. I don’t know for sure what purpose it serves now that I’ve learned this new schedule, but I know without a doubt that Your grace is sufficient for me. And every time I receive a comment or a review about how much one of my stories has meant in somebody’s life? I know that this pain has been worth it, because it played a role in that and God is being glorified. Someday, the pain will be gone forever. For now, I will gladly endure it if it means I can have a greater impact for the Kingdom of the Lord.

I’ll endure it with a smile on my face, too.

And that’s called joy.

The Reputation of Pastor George McVey

First of all, I assure you I have good reason for being so silent lately: The Savvy Demon’s Guide to Godly Living is nearing release! More details to come, but we’re focused elsewhere today.

The book is called Redeeming Reputation but I am absolutely horrible because I almost always misread that as Redeeming Redemption. I know, I know. I’m horrible and now you’re going to do it too and I owe author Pastor George McVey a huge apology and he’s going to boycott my blog and the world is going to end and—big sigh—I should have just kept that to myself. But I didn’t and now it’s too late. And Pastor McVey—let’s call him PG—is our special guest today! Boy, is my face red.

Redeeming Reputation is the story of Nathaniel Ryder, a preacher who follows the Lord’s calling to head out to the town of Redemption in the Wild West as an itinerant pastor. I’m trying to think whether I’ve actually read another western before and I don’t know that I have. This book has certainly struck a chord with fans of the genre, however, and there are currently 26 four- or five-star reviews on Amazon. That’s not too shabby. Reviewers are praising the action, the romance, the characters and even the preachin’. Praise God!

Of course, one of the reasons I love conducting interviews here is that it’s difficult to tell whether you’re going to like a book or not from a handful of reviews. I have a hard time, anyway, although there may be buzzwords that I pick up on that lets me know the reviewer’s speaking my language. I figure, however, that sitting down and chatting with the author for several minutes lets us get inside their head and really get comfortable with them, and hopefully that interaction gives us a good idea whether we’re going to care for their work or not. I certainly get to know authors a lot more through these interviews!

I had some problems with Redeeming Reputation that kept me from enjoying it as much as the reviewers on Amazon. I didn’t care for the protagonist and felt the plot was predictable. The love story is the type in

"It's nice to meet you! Will you marry me?"

which the characters are talking marriage within days of meeting, and that’s a bit of a pet peeve for me. Of course, just because I didn’t care for the story doesn’t mean you won’t. We’ll spend some time with the author. That should help you make a decision.

One element the book definitely has in its favor—and you’ll see this in the interview—is that there are enough meaty issues explored that we can have a bit of a dialogue about them. I don’t agree with how these are all handled in the story (and PG says he didn’t intend to handle them at all!), but I feel that a book that has some talking points that you can debate about a bit probably has more depth than a book without. PG and I both enjoyed talking about some of this stuff in the interview. And now I should stop talking about the interview...and just get right to it!

Brad: Thanks for stopping by, PG, and for giving me the chance to read and chat about your Christian western. Before we jump into questions about the book, however, let’s start with you. Tell us about yourself and the church where you serve.

What we imagine PG's house looks like.

PG: There really isn't a whole lot to tell about me. What you see is what you get: an overweight, middle-aged bald man. I've been married to my high school sweetheart for 26 years and we have three grown children, a girl and two boys. Our daughter has given us one rambunctious grandson and another grandchild is due Christmas Day. We live and minister in West Virginia's Capitol City of Charleston at an inner-city church called West Charleston Baptist Church. Besides my two legged family we have several furry members to our family, one Beagle dog and 6 cats. The dog is mine, the cats belong to everyone else.  Our church is small; we have around thirty members and we are outreach focused. I am the Worship and Teaching Pastor.

Brad: Look at that. We feel like we know you already, PG, even more than what your book may or may not reveal about you. I’m not going to ask you if there’s any wish fulfillment at play in your book. After all, you could always tell me no and I would be forced to refuse to believe you. You’re a pastor and you write about a pastor who goes around dispensing his own brand of Wild West justice! So talk to us about the similarities and differences between yourself and Nathaniel Ryder, the Preacher. Any parishioners you’d like to threaten to spank from time to time, as Nathan does in the book?

PG: I honestly don't think I'm anything like Nathan at all. I'm more like his grandfather, Nugget Nate. Nathan is handsome and quick with his hands I'm the exact opposite I'm slow and a bit more ragged around the edges. Where Nathan grew up around sophistication, I grew up Mountain.  I guess we are alike in that we

Sometimes there's talk about whether spanking should be
permitted in schools, but is everyone going to ignore the
question of whether it should be allowed in churches?

both believe that God is not one dimensional, meaning that he isn’t just a loving God or a just God but that he can be both at the same time. As for people in the church I'd like to spank at times, I believe I will take advantage of my right as a citizen of the United States and pledge the 5th Amendment, in that answering that question would tend to incriminate myself. From that you can draw your own conclusion.

Brad: That’s practically confirmation! If any of PG’s parishioners are reading this, be honest: you know you need to be spanked from time to time. What inspired or influenced Redeeming Redemption Reputation (I wish I could say that I typed that first one as a joke, but I actually sent it to PG like that!)? Any movies, TV shows, books or music that helped spark the ideas?

PG: I had lots of influences for the character of David Nathaniel Ryder the Third and a western tale as well. As the dedication of my book says, my own father was a big western fan and I spent my child hood watching and listening to old westerns. All the old westerns. Nathan himself was sparked by a tale my granny used to tell us about her great-grandfather who was both a circuit riding preacher and a town sheriff. Never at the same time but always one or the other. I remember thinking one day while remembering her stories and thinking what if someone was asked to do both jobs at the same time. The idea developed from there. The more I thought about it the more I wondered what would happen if not only was someone pastor and lawman at the same time but what if he was really good with his guns as well. The rest as they say is history.

Musically, I do have a western play list that I listen to when I'm writing a Redemption Tale. It is mostly  Ranger Doug and the Riders in The Sky. Also an influence of my dad’s. Most people know them today as the guys who sang the Woody's Round Up song from Toy Story 2.

Brad: That is a reference I get! Thank you! I’d like to talk about some of the messages that I felt came across in the novel. First, let’s talk about the fact that Nathan is more than willing to kill when he feels the situation warrants it. Although the book addresses that this might be questionable briefly through some fleeting moments of doubt for both Nathan and love interest Grace, it certainly sides with Nathan that he is justified in killing anyone who draws on him or threatens him, as well as beating up anyone who annoys him. Nathan is a man who never turns the other cheek as a matter of principle. Won’t he, to paraphrase the words of Jesus, die by the gun, since he’s so determined in the book to live by it?

PG: Wow, that wasn't the message I was trying to get across at all. In actuality, Nathan tries very hard to talk everyone out of drawing on him with two exceptions. The message I was trying to get across is that redemption is available to everyone equally and that some people will reject it and choose evil no matter what. As this series continues you will see that Nathan really does struggle with using his guns and if he is causing more harm than good.

Of course, the Wild West used to be even worse,
but then tickle fights were outlawed.

Truth be told how would we answer that question to the young Christian men who are returning from Iraq and Afghanistan today? Some of them have had no other choice than to kill their fellow man. Does that make them destined to die by the sword as Jesus said?  Honestly, I don't have answers to all those questions. I struggle with them just like anyone else would.  The books are true westerns and honestly no true western fan would read them without gunfights and fist fights and conflict. Some of it is internal, some of it is physical. Do I feel the actions my hero takes are justified? I do. Sometimes people choose to enact violence on others no matter what. If one can protect themselves and the ones they love then I believe they should. As Sheriff Jake says in Redeeming Reputation, by sending some unrepentant men to hell he is making it possible for several others to have a chance at redemption.  I wouldn't advocate taking the law into your own hands in our society today but the West was different, as Nathan points out time and again. The law and a lawman were few and far between at that time and sometimes the only law was the gun on your hip. 

Brad: Without a draft, all military duty in our nation is voluntary. I suppose I would assume that a believer would be okay with killing in the line of duty before they would join, but that may be an oversimplification, and it’s surely too complex an issue to get into here. Back to the book, a similar theme is that the characters are justified in doing whatever it takes to survive. It’s possible that all that is intended is a statement on the power of God’s forgiveness, but some statements make it seem as if there is no expectation of godliness in difficult circumstances: again, you need to do whatever it takes to survive, no matter the cost. This was a big question during the times of persecution for the Early Church, when the church leaders tried to decide whether those who had abandoned their faith in the face of persecution could be permitted to return, and what that might entail. Talk to me about your intentions here.

PG: Again, I would say that while I can see how that may have come across that way, it was never the intent of this book to touch on such a deep topic. However, I am a deep thinker and have struggled with that question in my own life and faith walk. What about the woman who feels like there is no choice but to sell her body to feed her starving kids? What about the man who takes food from the grocery store shelves

Judge her all you want, but does she really have a choice?
It's not like heroin's cheap or anything.

because his family hasn't eaten in days? Would I justify doing whatever it took to survive if I got to one of those points? Or would the right and moral teaching of my faith and the way I was raised rear its head and keep me on the straight and narrow?  I don't want to drag us into what would obviously be a deep theological dissertation and mostly be my own opinion. So I won't go there. What I will say is that the point I was trying to make in a certain character’s development wasn't that sin is okay or justifiable but that God's grace and mercy and forgiveness covers all sin. I believe that each person has to answer to HIM and HIM alone for every action they commit while on planet earth except for those actions covered by the blood of Christ in forgiveness. More importantly, I believe that God looks on our hearts and sees the truth of our motivation in everything we do.  Yes, I can see where it would seem like I was saying, “Hey, do whatever it takes to live and it's okay with God.” But that wasn't what I was trying to say. What I was saying is that, again, in that uniquely historical time and place, "The Wild West," things were different than they were in our modern and even the eastern, more civilized world of that day.

Brad: My point here, I should mention, is not to solve these weighty issues. Rather, I love it when fiction presents us with real, meaty themes to discuss, and I’m glad we have a chance to talk about them and hold them up to the standard of Scripture. Let’s talk about cash for a moment. Early on in the book, Nathan throws money around in a manner that suggests he has plenty to spare. He’s always willing to be noble and godly, and this often involves throwing some green at the problem—especially when it comes to Grace. Later on, Nathan receives some good financial news and it’s explicitly stated that now he can follow God wherever He leads—because he’ll be well-off. It got to the point where I felt there was a message that the wealthy can better follow God than the poor. It certainly is easier for Nathan to do the right thing when he’s well off enough that it doesn’t require any sacrifice. Jesus paints a picture where the wealthy almost seem disadvantaged to the poor in several passages, when it comes to the Kingdom of God. What message are you sending in your book?

The godliest duck you're ever likely to meet.

PG: Jesus does make that statement, I agree, that it is easier for a camel to enter through the eye of a needle than the rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. Yet, he didn't say it was an impossibility. I in my personal life know of both rich and poor people who use the funds that God gives them to further God's kingdom. Is it easier to follow God with money than without? NO, it isn't easier but truth be told it isn't harder either. Both groups have temptations that are uniquely their own.  The way Nathan treats money in this book and others to come is the way his grandfather treated money. It's not his but a tool that God is providing him with to be used where needed. Let's be real and honest for a minute: we all have those times when we ponder what it would be like to be wealthy. What I have done here is give Nathan the ability I wish I had, one of not having to pray about where the next house payment is coming from. Can I pay this bill or that bill this month? Can I fund this mission trip or that persons dream? I personally believe that there are those that God gives an abundance of funds too because he knows they will use it to do Kingdom work with. I also know I'm not one of them because in my personal life the temptation of making my own life easier would distract me from being that kind of a steward of God's resources. God gives to each what they can handle. Those that use what he gives them to further the kingdom? The love of that money has no hold on them. Those that don't, His word is plain he will remove even what they have and give to those who will. So can a rich man serve God better than a poor man? NO, only differently. In a future Redemption Tale we will see how David,

"All right. Now that I have the absolute necessities, it's
time to use my wealth for others. Oh, Jeeves!"

Nathan's father struggles with that and always has, trying to maintain the proper status of money and how it has compromised his own ministry.  I do however want to thank you, Brad, for giving me the opportunity to stop and think about all three of these tough spiritual issues today. I will admit it wasn't what I expected in an interview about my little western fantasy.

Brad: I disagree with you on only one point: that Jesus did indeed say that it was impossible for a rich man to be saved—without God (Matt. 19:26). Of course, given that salvation is impossible for all of us without God, it doesn’t really make that big of a difference. Boy, I’d like to believe that I’d be completely selfless with wealth. I believe fully that I would do better today than a year ago, but the truth is that I would still see to my comfort much more than I ought. Also, I’m glad you’ve enjoyed the questions. I hope my dear blog readers enjoy this sort of interchange as well!

Moving on to more interviewish questions, what do you perceive to be your greatest strength as an author? Your greatest weakness?

PG: My greatest strength in my mind is my ability to tell a story. My weakness without a doubt is the mechanics of writing. As you know from firsthand experience, my spelling and grammar leave much to be desired. 

Brad: I might point out here that I first started reading Redeeming Reputation via a Smashwords download and the editing was, indeed, very lacking. I won’t link to that here because I just checked and that is still the version available for sale. However, when I notified PG of the issue, he gave me the copy currently available for Kindle and that is much improved. (Blogmaster’s Note: PG says that he is currently working on revising the Smashwords version of the book and hopes to update the title in August.)

By the same token, we can ascertain that, if PG were a
werewolf, he would write about other werewolves.

It’s pretty clear that this is not just a western but a Christian western. Do you feel a responsibility, PG, to incorporate your faith into your work as a follower of Christ? Should we ever expect to see a secular novel from you?

PG: Again a great question. Honestly, my faith is such a part of who I am that I'm not sure I could ever separate it from what I write. I don't write "Christian fiction," per se. I just write about people of faith because I am a person of faith. Will I ever write a book that doesn't have faith in it ? Well as my own grand pappy used to say, anything’s possible. But it isn't very likely.

Brad: A very good answer, PG, and one that reflects my own thoughts pretty closely. Would you like to talk about what you’re working on now? Do you have an idea how many books featuring the Preacher we should we expect?

"Did someone say avenger? Well, shucks, that reminds
me of the time when Iron Man, Thor and I teamed up
to stop Loki from..."

PG: Currently, I am working on the third and fourth books in the saga of Nathan and Grace. The third one focusing on Grace’s past and what happens when a group of people refuse to extend the grace God has given them to the shepherd's family, which is a common problem in our own world and one I personally experienced. The forth book is actually a crossover book I am writing with Sophie Dawson in which Nathan and Grace visit Nathan's great Aunt Aggie in Cottonwood, which is Sophie’s series of books. All told as it sits right now, I see six books in the Redemption Tales and a series of smaller tales about Nathan as a US Marshall. I also have outlined two books on Nugget Nate and a short story that has Nathan telling his offspring some family tales about Nate, Aggie, David and even himself around campfires on a cattle drive. Also this year, I have two teaching books that I am working on in my spiritual warfare booklets and a few other ideas in other genres in various stages of planning. 

Brad: Pretty busy little bee, aren’t you, PG? And that’s a real neat idea, co-writing a crossover book with another independent author. If you get the chance to complete it. See, I notice you didn’t come packing your six shooters today, Pastor. That’s unfortunate, because I have some of the fastest hands in the West here and you’re in their sights. As my regular readers will know, there comes a time when I need to ask some tough questions, questions that authors aren’t always willing to talk about. It becomes necessary to apply some pressure. Just answer the questions, padre, and the gunslingers will stand down. Discounting the Holy Scriptures, tell me about your favorite book.

And PG regrets his claim that he likes to read anything.

PG: Well, I don't need six guns to deal with the likes of these owl hoots you've found, Brad. I do happen to have the very hatchet that Nugget Nate used to save Davey's life, as well as the knife he won off Jim Bowie when they met. It is just like them there yeller bellied galoots to bring a gun to a knife fight but the rightness of my cause will help me to prevail. I really don't have a favorite book or author to speak of. I am such an avid reader that I'll read almost anything. Lately I have been sticking to mostly indie authors because I find that I enjoy reading little-known authors with big ideas. Lately, I've read and really enjoyed books by Sophie Dawson, Melissa Turner Lee, Lynn Donovan, Pauline Creeden, Dana Pratola and Sophronia Belle Lyon, to name a few.  Each made me think about life and faith in ways that stretch me, which is what I want in my fiction. 

Brad: Hey! We know Sophronia, don’t we, gang? Ah geez. A bullet just went whizzing by PG’s ear. Someone’s got an itchy trigger finger. We’d better wrap this up so the boys (and one girl by the name of Carlita) can head over to the saloon and cheat at poker. If you had to name one favorite author, PG, who would it be?

PG: Again it's hard to name a favorite, but my absolute favorite is Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I have always been a big Sherlock Holmes fan. If not Doyle, then Burroughs or Kipling.  

Brad: Thank you for your candor. I’m a big Holmes fan myself. Carlita and the boys are standing down, although Stinky Joe is none too happy about it. You might watch your back on the way home. As with many of the authors I get to spotlight here, you’re independently published. Other than buying your books, of course, how can readers who enjoy your work best support you as an author?

PG: Go to Amazon and leave a review, tell others about my work or, hey, buy everyone a copy for

You can tell he's a preacher because he'd rather go off
and play poker with Stinky Joe than hang out with Carlita.

Christmas and birthdays. :) Honestly, just talk about what you liked about the ones you've read and if you haven't read them? Well, then, what are ya waiting fer, pardner?  Did I hear you say they were going to play poker? Hey Stinky Joe hole up a second deal me in.

All right. It’s me again. I was going to thank PG for stopping by but he’s already off bluffing like only a preacher man can do. For more of PG, you can check out his blog at http://www.georgesshorts.wordpress.com/ In addition to Redeeming Reputation, the second book in the series, Redeeming Trail, is also currently available. PG is also the author of the nonfiction titles Prayer Walking for Spiritual Breakthrough and The Complete Armor of God, as well as the episodic Champion of the Lightgiver series. Of course, you can thank him for visiting us by checking out anything that interests you. As a pastor’s kid, I can assure you he’d appreciate the income!

Star Trek Into the Prime Directive

The bad guy can't be all bad if he likes to hang out in the
little Starfleet symbol, right?

(Be forewarned: This blog post is about Star Trek Into Darkness, the recent film. While there is some talk of plot, our focus here all pertains to the first fifteen minutes or so of the movie. We don’t get into the primary storyline, so there are not many spoilers to be found. If you haven’t seen it yet but intend to, I don’t think you need to avoid this blog. I got your back.)

I really enjoyed Star Trek Into Darkness.

But then The Internets tried to make me hate it.

And some of The Internets made some good points. But sometimes it was just being nit-picky. And I suppose I got a little bit self-conscious about admitting I liked the movie.

But I did. I really did. I love Benedict Cumberbatch in Sherlock and I thought he did a great job in this. I enjoy the new cast and all the references to the rest of Trek and I think Karl Urban does an excellent McCoy and I even loved that one scene that owes a huge debt to a previous Trek film and some people thought it was horrible and pandering to the audience but I personally really enjoyed. Oh and I like Simon Pegg in pretty much everything.

And so Smaug the Dragon and Bilbo Baggins decided to put their
animosity aside to solve crimes in modern day London.

And, seriously, if you’ve never seen the modern British take on Sherlock that features Benedict Cumberbatch and his Hobbit costar Martin Freeman, you should really stop reading this blog, go watch some of it and then come back raving about how good it is but ready to give me your full attention. Actually, I’m now really tempted to stop writing this so I can go watch it myself, but I must focus. Plus, I’m in a hotel right now and the family is all sleeping so I shouldn’t start watching something. And I’m really tired and I wouldn’t let myself go to sleep if I got into Sherlock right now. Because it’s really good. But I need sleep because we’re moving into our new house tomorrow...which, by the by, is why it’s been so long since my last post. There’s been a lot to do! But, once this gets posted, it’ll mean we’re settled and with The Internets so that’ll be a happy day indeed!

Oh, where we were? That’s right. Star Trek Into Darkness.

As much fun as it would be, I’ll admit that I’d probably make a pretty bad movie critic. If a film does a decent job, I enjoy just giving myself over to it without all the overanalyzing and the rest. I wanted to go along for the ride with this movie and they didn’t make that hard for me so I did. This isn’t a review site and, honestly, it’s a popcorn movie so I’m not going to gush about it or really go into the plot at all. I’ll just say that I enjoyed it and then I’ll talk about the Prime Directive.

Of course, Janeway took everything seriously.

The Prime Directive is a classic Star Trek rule and plot device. It’s so-called because it is supposed to be rule #1 for Starfleet. I honestly don’t remember Kirk stressing too much about it too often in the original series (but I’m sure some commenters will let me know if I’m wrong!), but Captains Picard and Janeway both certainly took it seriously. In fact, my daughters and I have just been watching an episode of Star Trek: Voyager in which Janeway and crew find themselves on the other end of a more advanced culture’s own version of the Prime Directive. Basically, off the top of my head, the rule is that the Starfleet crews are prohibited from interfering with the natural evolution of other worlds, particularly focusing on cultures that have not yet developed the technology to explore the stars. In that episode of Voyager, the crew find a people who have the ability to shave at least forty years off their trip home (they’re lost and seventy years or so from home, and probably more since they stop to have an adventure every week)—but whose laws prohibit the sharing of technology with other people. It’s more fun to be the people with the good technology.

Pictured: a successful Starfleet mission.

At the beginning of Star Trek Into Darkness, young Kirk leads his crew to violate the Prime Directive in a 

big way. The clearest dilemma involves the choice to save Spock’s life even if it means revealing themselves to a primitive culture (guess which Kirk chooses...), but they actually break the rule well before even getting to that point: the entire reason Spock is in danger is that he is attempting to freeze an active volcano to stop it from erupting and wiping out all life on the planet. Humanitarian mission or not, the Prime Directive means not interfering with the natural evolution of peoples, especially technologically primitive peoples, and the right thing to do, by Starfleet standards, is to let the people die if natural selection determines they should.

This is not, by the way, a blog post about Darwinist evolution. I’ve already covered the fact that evolutionary theory is entirely incompatible with the testimony ofScripture, and I stand by that. We’re going in a different direction today.

This bridge crew, on the other hand, may be more about
network quotas. Look at how diverse they are!

When it comes to science fiction worlds, you’ve got your dystopias where society has regressed, but sometimes you have your utopias in which mankind has bettered itself and evolved past most crime and selfishness. Gene Roddenberry’s vision for Star Trek always tended toward the latter. The Prime Directive, then, is a product of an advanced, more refined culture  in which humanity has learned to work together, in which discrimination and prejudice are archaic concepts. Notice, for example, how ahead of its time the multicultural bridge crew of the original Star Trek series was. That wasn’t to fulfill network quotas or to appease civil rights groups: it was an important aspect of the show’s philosophy.

I applaud every step toward racial equality. Racism is sickening and little sickens me so much as when individuals or churches twist the Bible to try to support their personal prejudice. Cultural differences enrich our lives with variety and with greater wisdom than if we all acted and thought alike. God did not create a dull, monochromatic world, but rather a tapestry bursting with myriad colors, experiences, stories and passions. To try to stamp out diversity would be wrong and we as a people would be poorer for it.

I would share the statistics about
rich babies choking on silver
spoons, but they're too tragic.

But no matter who we are, where we come from, the color of our skin, the accent of our speech, the slant of our eyes or the legends of our ancestors, we are all alike in one very important way: we are all desperately in need of a savior, and that savior is the Lord Jesus Christ. It has been said that death is the great equalizer

(even better than the one on your car stereo, I guess), but all of us, born with a silver spoon or on the dirt floor of an African hut, begin our lives spiritually dead. The price has been paid to redeem us, of course, to bring us to life forevermore, but, like any gift, it must be accepted to take hold of it.

“How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in Him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? (Rom. 10:14-15)

If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, you have been sent. Period. I can’t say whether you’re obedient or not, but the Bible makes it abundantly clear that you have been sent. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matt. 28:19), as Jesus commanded. I suppose we could have a talk about whether one who refuses to obey is actually a Christ follower if they refuse to, y’know, follow Christ, but I’m not the judge in these matters so we won’t get into it right now.

What we will get into is the question of tolerance and the question of our own personal little Prime Directives that society so pressures us toward. I’m pretty big on tolerance, actually, when it comes to people. I think there’s a big difference between tolerating people and tolerating sin, and I’m commanded to love all people. The sin I’m most concerned about not tolerating is in my own life. That’s the sin that should really disgust me, and yet it’s often the sin that’s easiest to explain away, isn’t it? (As a side note, local churches do have a God-given responsibility to deal with sin in their midst, but it’s not our focus here.) When the world—spiritually dead from birth—behaves like sinners, it really doesn’t catch me off guard. The Bible makes it pretty clear we live in a fallen world, and I think that the answer to that is to make disciples, not to petition Congress to hide the sins we’re most uncomfortable with. It is the Holy Spirit that changes hearts and lives. But I’m getting off track (yes, I know, we’re all very surprised...).

Technically, the quote is, "Luv is a verb."

The point I am trying to make here is that there is a massive difference between tolerating people and upholding a personal little Prime Directive to not engage them with the Gospel. As I mentioned earlier, tolerance is great, but we have a higher calling: to love. And love, alas, as DC Talk so memorably rapped once upon a time, is a verb. Just as a follower of Christ must actually follow Jesus Christ, so to love your neighbor as yourself will and must involve very real action, and no, I don’t mean sending out plenty of Valentines each year. My gosh—if you actually love someone, it’s a given that you’re going to tolerate them, yeah? Respect who they are, where they come from, what they believe, how they dress, what they like and so on...

If we lived in a perfect world free of conflict or problems, the call to love would be pretty straightforward, wouldn’t it? But the truth is that, in different circumstances, love can look different.

Put yourself in the comfy, white, low top sneakers of the maid at Country Inn and Suites. You look down the hall you are charged with cleaning and see several Do Not Be Disturbed signs hanging on the doors. On a normal day, you are very happy to obey the sign, to come back later to provide turndown service to those rooms. You wouldn’t dream of disturbing those guests, would you?

Except that this isn’t a normal day.

"I'm bored, Reginald. Shall we attack a hotel later?"
"Yes, lets."

A streak of tigers has infiltrated the comfortable, affordable hotel! Yes, I said a streak! I looked it up and that’s the correct term! These wily tigers (oh I love big cats) have already gnawed through the phone lines so there is no chance of phoning the guestrooms. Since the tigers have also gotten their hands on a master keycard (these are very smart tigers, which I think is pretty normal), the only possible way for these guests to be safe is if they lock themselves out on the balcony so that the firefighters outside can rescue them.

No cleaning toilets for you today! You get to be a hero!

You rush from room to room, delivering the crucial instructions to panicked guests. But then you come to Room 307. Oh dear! There’s a Do Not Disturb sign! What do you do?

I realize this is a tricky question. You, Consuela Gutierrez, Housekeeper Extraordinaire, have been taught to respect the guests and their desire for privacy. They might be offended if you violate their wish. They might yell at you! They might answer the door naked and that would get uncomfortable in a hurry. Of course, without your warning, they will surely be eaten.

I'm sorry I brought up Star Trek V, everyone. I'll
understand if you never visit my blog again.

One of the rationales behind the Prime Directive is that starship captains do not have the right to play God (incidentally, everyone would be better off if starship captains did not direct movies in which they met people playing God). If nature and the universe and fate and all have decided a people should be wiped off the face of the earth, then of course they should be! Unless, um, their technology is good enough, of course. I would suggest, however, that this is a very narrow, shallow way of thinking.

If man possesses an eternal soul, that needs to be taken into account.

If all roads do not lead to the same place after death, that needs to be taken into account.

If the choices we make on this earth has some bearing in what happens in eternity, that needs to be taken into account.

Eternity, as it turns out, is a long freaking time.

If every single person born on this planet possesses an inherent sin nature, if they are separated from God by default, that needs to be taken into account.

If all who reject Christ and His sacrifice on the cross will spend an eternity in hell, then that really, really needs to be taken into account.

If the message of Scripture is true, then the most unloving thing you can ever do is keep your yap shut about the Gospel. Is it rude to share our biblical beliefs with others? Is it disrespectful to their upbringing? Is it too personal? Is it none of our business? Is it bad form?

Who cares!?

If they die in their sins, they will be spending eternity—forever!—in a lake of burning fire! I don’t think there’s any possible way to exaggerate this. Not to be melodramatic but this is literally the biggest, most important news of all time. And I think it’s so easy to go through our day-to-day and somehow not see it.

Honestly, I believe in being tactful. I think it’s so important that, when we share our faith, we do so with gentleness and respect (1 Pet. 3:15). I think it’s shortsighted to harass and badger your friends about Christ to the point where they are no longer your friends because I think that a solid relationship that is constantly, if subtly, pointing toward Christ is more valuable than being a blowhard and not taking no for an answer. And I’m very dubious of going either to the street or the ball game with a big sign as The Way to Reach the World. I think that’s so much easier than truly investing in a relationship to try to reach someone and also so much less effective.

But think of it. Think about someone you love who does not follow Christ: a sibling, a friend, a spouse, a longtime coworker, whomever. Are you satisfied that you have done everything in your power (which of

Man without God is as incomplete as someone who starts
to watch Lost in the middle of season three and wants
to know what in the world is going on.

course will include a crapload of prayer, as only the Holy Spirit can change a heart) to reach them for Christ? Do they know your story, the life Jesus redeemed you from and the difference He makes in your day-to-day? Do they know His story? Are you salt and light in their lives? Do you live a life full of good works that will lead to others glorifying the Lord?

This isn’t to try to beat anyone up. We all know and care about people who don’t know Christ (and, if you don’t, CHANGE THAT NOW) and it can be heart wrenching to see them constantly reject the One they need so desperately.

But if you’ve bought into this world’s lie that you can only be a good friend by keeping your faith to yourself, then maybe it’s time to step back and take stock. Ask yourself: Do I really care about them? Do I really believe that the Bible is true? If you’re answering yes to both questions but you are not actively, personally looking for and making opportunities to share your faith, then you need to go back and ask the questions again. And again. And again. Because the math just doesn’t add up. It’s time to make a change.

I’m trying to find the story online so I can properly cite it and get the facts right, but my Googling is leaving me dry, so I’m going to paraphrase this as best I can. I’ve heard my Dad share it plenty of times in sermons.

A young man was once granted an audience with a famous preacher and evangelist, one who had led many to Christ in his fruitful career. I don’t recall who it was. Maybe Dwight Moody? Anyway, the young man excitedly told the old preacher that he wanted to be used by God, too, and he wanted to be a famous evangelist some day as well. The preacher smiled and sent the young man to look out the window of the hotel room where he was staying, and then to come back and report what he saw.

After taking a few moments to look, the young man came back and said, “Sir, it’s very busy today. I saw at

"I see...horseless carriages...! What devilry is this!?"

least fifty people of all ages going about their business. There were carriages and streetlights and vendors selling newspapers and fruit.”

“Look again,” the preacher replied.

The young man spent longer at the window this time, determined to pass this test. When he came back, he thought perhaps he had figured out what he was supposed to report on so he said, “I see the Creation of God Almighty! I see trees and grass and birds. I see the sky and clouds and the sun. Across the street, I saw some flowers blooming.”

A third time, the preacher sent the young man to the window. As the young man looked frantically for whatever he kept missing, the evangelist joined him and pointed down to the bustling people going about their days.

“If you want to be an evangelist,” the preacher said, “then you cannot look at a person without seeing a lost soul, desperately in need of a Savior.”

This is the true business of our lives. This is our Prime Directive, our number one purpose: to glorify God and to point always to Jesus Christ. Not only can we not truly love without sharing Him with those who need Him, I don’t think we can be particularly decent human beings. The stakes are so high I cannot possibly overstate them. Eternity hangs in the balance.

Just in case Jesus' calling isn't enough for you,
here's Uncle Sam also getting on your case.

I would like to invite you to leave, in the comments, the first name of someone whom you are actively trying to reach for Christ. I will pray for anyone you mention. If you’re reading this post, whether you’d like to leave a name or not, I’ll ask you to take a few moments and pray for any names listed here. Because, again, only the Holy Spirit can bring someone from death to life. But He can and does use us as well.

After all, how can they believe in One they’ve never heard of? And how can they hear unless someone tells them about Him? Congratulations. You just became someone. Now go do something with it.