Why, TO? A lesson from Ecclesiastes

Note: When this post was first written, disputes over the validity of Owens' hospital trip being an attempted suicide were not current. Since this time, there are disputing reports of why Owens went to the hospital.

As I was eating my cereal this morning, I heard the news that NFL superstar wide receiver and Dallas Cowboy, Terrell Owens, was taken to the hospital Tuesday night after an apparent suicide attempt.

Owens "attempted suicide by overdosing on pain medication, even putting two more pills into his mouth after fire rescue personnel arrived, The Associated Press reported Wednesday citing a police report.

A Dallas police report released Wednesday morning said Owens told rescue workers "that he was depressed." The report was first released by WFAA-TV.

The rescue worker "noticed that [his] prescription pain medication was empty and observed [Owens] putting two pills in his mouth,'' the police report said.

The worker attempted to pry them out with her fingers, then was told by Owens that before this incident he'd taken only five of the 40 pain pills in the bottle he'd emptied. The worker then asked Owens "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time [he] stated, 'Yes.'"

Whenever one hears of a famous person attempting suicide, the question, "Why?" usually comes to mind. Not too many years ago, Deion Sanders, the elite superstart in the NFL in the 1990s attempted suicide while at the top of his game. There are many more instances of this kind of action throughout history. Why? Doesn't TO have everything in life he could need? He has plenty of money, a high-profile job, fame, fortune...why suicide?

The Bible has a pesonal account of someone who was more famous and had more fortune then TO. While his account never mentions attempting suicide, listen to these words from King Solomon, who was known to be the riches, and wisest, king in the history of Israel.

"Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher, "Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless."

What does a man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun? Generations comes and generations go, but the earth remains forever." (Ecclesiasters 1:1-2)

Solomon tried making the thirst for knowledge all about life:

"I thought to myself, 'Look, I have grown and increased in wisdom more then anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me...then I applied to myself to the understanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly, but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind." (Ecc. 1:16-17)

Solomon tried making the thirst for pleasure all about life:

"I thought in my heart, 'Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.' But that also proved to be meaningless. I tried cheering myself with wine, and embracing folly - my mind still guiding me with wisdom...I undertook great projects...I built houses...I made gardens...I owned more herds and flocks than anyone in Jerusalem...I amassed gold and silver for myself...I acquired a harem as well...Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun." (Ecc. 2:1-11)

After everything was weighed in the balances, Solomon was left with just this conclusion:

"Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgmnt, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil." (Ecc. 12:13-14)

10 Questions with Dr. Frank Catanzarro

This week's interview is with Dr. Frank Catanzarro. Dr. Cat, as his students call him, is a professor of Bibical Counseling at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, NC.

1) Briefly tell us about your life before Christ became your Lord and Savior, how you came to know Christ, and how your life has been changed since Christ.
FC: I was saved at the age of 6 so there is not much to tell before I came to Christ. He called me into the ministry at age 14. I responded positively, but when I went to college I became rather rebellious and didn’t think much about the Lord and the things I knew He wanted me to accomplish. It’s a familiar story, but a sad one nonetheless. At the age of 25, I began to take seriously the call of God on my life and began to pursue His path. I am grateful that He has allowed me to be involved in ministry all these years and my prayer is that my life will honor Him in all ways.

2) In your opinion, what is the most crucial inner-denominational subject facing the SBC today?

FC: There are many subjects being discussed in the SBC today. Among those topics are Ecclesiology, the place of Calvinism, and Ecumenism, just to name a few. I really believe that there is an issue that we should be discussing, but I don’t hear much about it. That issue is the problem surrounding the fact that very few Southern Baptists ever attempt to lead someone to Christ and even fewer actually do. We have all kinds of programs designed to train people in evangelism, but when I go and preach in various churches, I hear little about it. It could be a problem of perception on my part, but it does concern me. I just wonder how we can have such great news for folks and continue to be so timid in our approach to sharing it. I know that we have had challenges and emphases in the Convention concerning this, but it just doesn’t seem to translate into action. Is there a philosophical problem among the churches relative to evangelism? I just don’t know. I would like to hear more preaching about it and I would like to see more people being challenged to respond in worship services.

3) You are a professor of biblical counseling at SEBTS. What is the biggest challenge that you face on a day-to-day basis in your field of study?

FC: The biggest challenge, I believe, for the biblical counselor is remaining true to the Word and not allowing the influence of culture to infiltrate the counseling. We want to glorify God and point people to Him. Because I see biblical counseling as being intensive discipleship, the Word of God and His Spirit are vital to all I do. Counseling truth mandates that the Spirit of God empower that truth in the life of the believer. So my first role is to be an evangelist to those who do not believe and then to be a discipler to those who do. Sometimes it’s easier to try and be a problem solver, but that’s not really what we are called to do. In a practical sense that is occurring, but really we should be pointing people to Christ because in Him are found the long-term answers.

4) Briefly explain how biblical counseling is different from Christian psychology.

FC: Truly Christian psychology is biblical counseling. The term psychology really refers to the study of or care of the soul. So a truly Christian psychology would be informed by distinctively Christian principles. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. Many today who refer to themselves as Christian counselors or Christians psychologists are Christian people practicing secular principles. So for me the distinctive that separates a biblical psychology or a biblical counseling ministry from other forms of counseling is a biblical world view that informs everything that is done in the counseling room.

5) Is there a specific area of biblical counseling that you are most interested in?

FC: I am interested in everything the Bible has to say about the problems that people face. The ministry the Lord has given me has seemed to be directed into the area of crisis intervention. That’s a broad category that includes many things. I guess the vast majority of my work is in the areas of marriage and family and intervening in the crises of what people experience in those contexts.

6) A lof Christians, when faced with deep spiritual problems, consult psychologists first. Why do you think they do not first consult their church pastors?

FC: Well there could be many reasons behind this. Some are afraid of embarrassment because their pastor knows them so well. Some may not trust their pastor to keep things confidential. Some don’t believe that pastors have sufficient training that would enable them to help in times of need. Another reason people often by-pass the church is because there is a prevailing trust in those who are considered specialists in certain fields. We seem to believe that if a person has a certification in certain areas, they are by default better qualified to help. Another reason is that churches encourage people to go outside the church in times of crisis. We have come to believe, or at least communicate the fact that the community at large is better equipped to handle the problems people face in life. In many ways the Church has given our ministry of soul-care over to the community. I apologize for a short answer to a complex question.

7) Who has had the biggest influence in your life in respect to your spiritual and scholastic journey?

FC: In my spiritual life, my grandfather was a huge influence. He taught me a great deal about the Lord and about walking faithfully with Him. Academically, my wife has probably been the great influence and encouragement. She encouraged during times of trial and has been such a faithful companion throughout the 25 years we have been married.

8) What is your favorite book of the Bible?

FC: It’s hard to say…favorite. I do love the book of Esther and my favorite character of the Bible, I think, is Joseph (the father of Jesus). His obedience is a tremendous testimony and glorifies God.

9) What city had the best canoli that you've ever eaten?

FC: Boston.

10) What's the biggest difference between someone from New York and someone from South Carolina?

FC: New Yorkers like cannolis…South Carolinians like banana pudding

Mohler on "Need-Preaching"

The following cut and paste is especially significant becaues the majority of Evangelical churches take this approach. Dr. Al Mohler on preachers preaching to the people's "felt needs:"

"The idea that preaching should be addressed to the self-perceived "needs" of the congregation is now well ingrained in the larger evangelical culture. The argument behind this is almost always missiological -- just preach to the needs people already feel and then you can point them to a deep need and God's provision of the Gospel.

There are several basic flaws with this approach. In the first place, our "needs" are hopelessly confused -- even hidden from us. As a matter of fact, the knowledge of our deepest needs is a secret even to ourselves until we receive that knowledge by the work of the Holy Spirit and the gift of Scripture. This is God's mercy -- that we should come to discover our most basic need.

Second, our perceived or felt needs almost always turn out to be something other than needs -- at least in any serious sense. We have wants and desires and concerns, but most of these are not genuine needs that lead to desperation -- the kind of needs that remind us constantly that we lack all self-sufficiency. To the contrary, most of us feel quite self-sufficient. Thus, the needs we feel are the "needs" characteristic of apathetic affluence, romantic aspirations, and spiritual emptiness.

Third, preachers who believe they can move the attention of individuals from their "felt" needs to their need for the Gospel will find, inevitably, that the distance between the individual and the Gospel has not been reduced by attention to lesser needs. The sinner's need for Christ is a need unlike all other needs -- and the satisfaction of having other needs stroked and affirmed is often a hindrance to the sinner's understanding of the Gospel.

William H. Willimon, bishop of the North Alabama Conference of the United Methodist Church, spoke to the futility of felt needs preaching in a recent interview in Leadership [interview not available online]. His words are worth notice:

Jesus doesn't meet our needs; he rearranges them. He cares very little about most things that I assume are my needs, and he gives me needs I would've never had if I hadn't met Jesus. He reorders them.

I used to ask seminarians, "Why are you in seminary?" They'd say, "I like meeting people's needs." And I'd say, "Whoa. Really? If you try that with the people I know, they'll eat you alive."

Now, if you're a pastor in Honduras, it might be okay to define your ministry as meeting needs, because more people in Honduras have interesting biblical needs – food, clothing, housing. But most people in the churches I know get those needs met without prayer. So they've moved on to "needs" like orgasm, a satisfying career, an enjoyable love life, a positive outlook on life, and stuff the Bible has absolutely no interest in.

Those are strong words -- and words we all need to hear.

What Mohler does not give is the alternative to need-based preaching. I submit to you that the alternative to need-based preaching is...need-based preaching. That Christ is the only one who knows our needs and can meet our needs. Submitting ourselves to the authority of Scripture through expository preaching is paramount...what a novel concept!

New Church Website

The director of media at my church, Jeff Scruggs, has recently completed the overhaul of our church website here at Crosswell Baptist. Check it out - Crosswell Baptist Church

4% of SB Pastors "don't know"

BP had an interesting article today citing that 10% of Southern Baptist pastors considered themselves to be 5-Point Calvinists, or, more simply, Calvinists. 85% of SB pastors claimed not to be Calvinists, 1% did not answer and 4% said that they did not know. Of all of these numbers, only one is disturbing to me and that is the fact that 4% of pastors did not know if they were 5-Point Calvinists or not. Are you kidding me? I guess 4 out of every 100 pastors either a) do not care about theology, or b) are simply ignorant. Any SB pastor should at least know what Calvinism is and somewhere along the line think to themselves, "that's where I stand," or "that's not me."

As for me, I am not a '5-point Calvinst." I'm closer to a 4. Therefore, I would be in the 85% of pastors that claimed not to be a Calvinist...but at least I know that I am not. I wonder how those 4% of pastors did in their Systematic Theology classes? Since how we live our lives in practice should be a result of applying our theological beliefs, when one does not have an opinion on the doctrines that the TULIP touches (doctrines of God, Salvation, Man, etc) that leaves one to wonder what are they preaching?

Jackson Charles Wallace

Tuesday, September 12, 2006, Jackson Charles Wallace came out of his mother's womb. Even though he has existed for over 9 months, Tuesday was the day he made his entrance onto the grand stage of life. Emily had a wonderfully easy birth as God answered all of our prayers and is still showering us with blessing after blessing. What a wonderful God we have.

10 Questions with Dr. Alvin Reid

This week's interview is with Dr. Alvin Reid, the Bailey Smith Chair of Evangelism at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, NC. I had the privilege of taking Dr. Reid's Intro to Evangelism class back in '03.

1) Briefly tell us about your life before Christ became your Lord and Savior, how you came to know Christ, and how your life has been changed since Christ.

AR: I met Christ at age 11, August 1970. I was at a small church that exploded in the Jesus Movement. Seeing the hippies radically changed made the most immediate impact. Jesus changed my life and I have never gotten over it!

2) In your opinion, what is the most crucial inner-denominational subject facing the SBC today?

AR: Things must change. We have seen a resurgence in biblical conviction without which I doubt we would be having this conversation. Now we need a resurgence of biblical practice. The biggest issue facing us in my view is how to help churches create a CULTURE where God is exalted, sacrificial living is expected, and lost people of all stripes are loved. A program will not solve the issues facing us; but leadership can, which is why I teach.

3) You have a lot of experience working with youth and have been outspoken about how youth should be utilized in every aspect of the church, most importantly evangelism. What are some specific activities youth can be involved in to help build Christ's Kingdom?

AR: Well I wrote a whole book on that called Raising the Bar, and it has been amazingly well received by youth pastors and pastors. In a nutshell: biblically youth are not children finishing childhood, they are young adults moving toward full adulthood. We should be raising an army not pacifying babies. Youth will rise to the level we set and the example we live. That does not mean cut out fun--I love to have a good time! But it does mean helping them see that it is really fun to see friends get saved. Youth need the wisdom of the aged, so they do not need to be the deacons or pastors, but they can do so much of the work of the church. Look at how Mormons with a false gospel use youth as their missionary force.

4) You are the Bailey Smith Chair and Professor of Evangelism and Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. What is the most mind-blowing thing the Lord has shown you in your last couple of years in your field of teaching?

AR: That God could use someone like me, an insecure, nervous young person, to train many of the leaders of our convention in the years to come in evangelism. I am still awed that I get to do what I do. Our great God is amazing.

5) Many Christians seem to have the most trouble witnessing to family members. What advice can you give those people about how to approach a lost family member?

AR:Look at some of Thom Rainer's research on this. He has found that family members, especially wives with unsaved husbands, can have a significant impact evangelistically. 1 Peter 3 gives insight also--our lifestyle must match our words. And never underestimate the mighty power of prayer.

6) Postmodernism is one of the buzzwords of the day. In your opinion, does a post-modern mindset exist in rural towns, just big cities, or even at all?

AR: Certainly in the great cities of America, moreso than the rural communities. That is an almost impossible question to answer briefly so let me be a shameless self promoter and mention I talk about that in my book Radically Unchurched: Who They Are and How to Reach Them (Kregel). :-)

7) Who has had the biggest influence in your life in respect to your spiritual and scholastic journey?

AR: No one person. Well, my wife Michelle would be the one. She has always been so supprotive of whatever I felt God was calling us to do. Also Russ Bush, Paige Patterson, Roy Fish, Malcolm McDow, Danny Akin, and lots of my peers.

8) What is your favorite book of the Bible?

AR: Philippians.

9) What's the most glaring difference between SEC and ACC football?

AR: SEC is better.. I am an ACC fan now (GO HEELS) but I am an ACC fan.

10) "What do you want on your tombstone?"

AR: Lover of God, lover of his family, and lover of people.

What is the central focus of child-rearing?

In the book, Shepherding a Child's Heart, author Tedd Tripp states, "The central focus of child-rearing is to bring children to a sober assessment of themselves as sinners."

There's a statement that you don't hear everyday. Children are sinners. Anyone who has ever raised children (not me, yet) or has worked with children (that's me) can understand the truth behind Tripp's statement. He continues:

"They must understand the mercy of God, who offered Christ as a sacrifice of sinners. How is that accomplished? You must address the heart as the fountain of behavior, and the conscience as the God-given judge of right and wrong. The cross of Christ must be the central focus of your child-rearing." (p.120)

This quotation brings to bear the central issue I believe of why people accept or reject Christ. People accept Christ because they realize that they are sinners, not 'good people' who are in need of a savior to rescue them from this lifestyle.

People reject Christ because...they either a) don't think they are sinners, b) don't think they need a Savior, or c) don't want a Savior.

Either way it is enlightening to read a 'how-to' on child-rearing with the Cross of Christ as the center of parenting.

Witnessing 101

Baptist Press has an article on two Oklahoma Baptists, Chris Forbes and Alan Quigley, who recently shared Christ with 20,000 people over a 10-state area in only 14 days.

"On Aug. 18, Quigley and Forbes left Oklahoma City in a specially-painted pick-up truck on a road trip with a goal of making 10,000 evangelistic contacts. They focused on rest areas, truck stops, tourist sites and other places where people gather, and they handed out tracts, Bibles, water bottles and key chains to raise awareness of Jesus.

We figured it was 10,000 times easier to share the Gospel than most people thought,” Quigley said. “But we found it was 10,000 times easier than we thought.”

This article especially resonates with me because this weekend begins a 9-week journey where I'm going to be leading the church through The NET evangelistic program during the Sunday night service.

Those unfamiliar with The NET will learn that this program focuses on relational witnessing (sharing Christ with those you know and are building relationships with) and the sharing of one's personal testimony. Pray for our church that they, as well as myself, will be re-energized and burdened for the hearts of the lost of the Sumter community.

One aspect of The NET that I love is that it is built around one's testimony. People can argue Scripture and theology all they want, but they can't argue the supernatural experience of one's coming to know Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Fat Baptists

Here is a sad article found at Baptist Press:

"BAPTISTS AMONG MOST OBESE -- The Chicago Sun-Times ran a column Aug. 25 deriding Baptists -- and especially Southern Baptists -- for being guilty of gluttony as they avoid other sins such as drinking and smoking.

“America is becoming known as a nation of gluttony and obesity, and churches are a feeding ground for this problem,” Ken Ferraro, a Purdue sociology professor said, according to a column by Cathleen Falsani.

Ferraro studied the correlation between religious behavior and body mass index, and his most recent study was published in the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion earlier this summer.

About 27 percent of Baptists, including Southern Baptists, North American Baptists and fundamentalist Baptists are obese, Ferraro found, making them the most overweight group of religious adherents in America.

“Baptists may find food one of the few available sources of earthly pleasures,” Ferraro said, which has led to overeating becoming the “accepted vice.”

Food plays an important social role in most Baptist churches, Falsani noted, drawing from her experience growing up in a Southern Baptist church. From the coffee and doughnuts on Sunday morning to the potluck dinners and ice cream socials, Baptists seem to get their fill of casseroles, pudding, fried chicken and sweet tea.

By contrast, about 1 percent of the Jewish population and less than 1 percent of other non-Christians including Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists are obese. Daniel Sack, a historian and author in Chicago, told Falsani the reason may be that American Christians don’t have any dietary behavior codes."

What does everyone think about this? Could it be true that because Southern Baptists take such a strong stand on alcohol and other drugs that over-eating is taking up the slack?

Stay Tuned

A new interview is on its way.

Quiz Time!

My Sunday school class is halfway through learning about the doctrine of God. Here is their quiz for this upcoming Sunday. (Those who answer correctly get a gift from the Dollar General store). Anyone think they can answer these? No cheating...By the way these are heavily influenced by Grudem.

1) What are three ways that we can know that God exists?

2) True or False: God has a beginning

3) True or False: God needs mankind

4) True of False: God the Father is invisible

5) Omnipotence means God is:

6) Omniscience means God is:

7) Give an example of one of God’s moral attributes:

8) The persons of the Trinity could be said to be Equal in essence, different in ______

9) "Ex Nihilo" means ________

10) What was the main reason that God created the universe?