Ethiopia Post: Pure and Undefiled Religion

It has been a few days since I touched down at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.  Over the past 48 hours or so it has been become very clear to me that somehow I am going to be connected to this country for the rest of my life.  There are things in this country and the people that live in it, that are greater and more beautiful than anything else I have experienced in the world.  At the same time, there are things in this country that are darker and more sinister than anything I ever thought could happen in real life.

I have heard some of the difficult stories before, but they never lose their power.  I have heard of the countless fathers who have abandoned their families to a life on the street, because of their spineless desire to look out for number one.  I have heard of the tribes in the less developed country who kill babies they deem “cursed” because through an accident of nature their teeth didn’t grow the right way.  I have heard of countless preventable illness and conditions that are a death sentence here, while easily treatable in the United States.  I have even heard the absolutely enraging tale of a project director for a group for orphaned children, claiming the name of Christ while at the same time pocketing donation money, sexually abusing the children, and making them put on happy faces for donor visits under threat of physical abuse.

These are not easy things to hear about.   But not hearing about them would not make them any less true.

More real though than the stories I have heard, are the children I have seen.  Literally thousands of children wander the streets of Addis or the countryside, utterly alone.  I have met hundreds of these children also at various orphanages and care centers.  Obviously because of the communication barrier it is hard to really connect with every one of them, but on some level it’s fairly simple to communicate with a smile, or holding hands, or my favorite, a laugh.  The easiest way is to ask them what their name is in Amharic.   Once they tell me, I point to my head and tell them, “My name is, Malata”, which sends them into hysterical laughter every single time.  Malata means “bald” in Amharic. 

In the middle of all these visits and children I came across one of One Child Campaign’s projects in Shone, about a seven hour drive out of the city.  There in the middle of endless farmland, mud huts, and wandering children is a small compound with a church building made of sticks and mud, attached to a two room cement structure.  Next to this stands a shell of new construction, about a third of the way done with 5 rooms.   Right now it’s just cement walls and a roof, but the vision is an orphanage for abandoned children in the area.  It is not uncommon for infants to be found abandoned in the bush, and at the moment there is nowhere for these children to go anywhere close by.

There is a difference between this orphanage, and some of the others I have visited.  This orphanage is modeled on others started by the same church here in Addis Ababa.  They are purposely kept small to focus on the children as much as possible.  The idea is that the children will feel like they have a home at the orphanage, rather than like they interned there because no one else wants them at the moment.  The woman who runs these projects puts a heavy emphasis on making the children feel loved, like they really matter in the here and now, even though the point is to place them into loving and qualified homes as soon as possible.   She told me that in Shone, she will make an exception to her ordinary rule of 10 children at a time.  (5 boys, 5 girls)  She says she will not turn away any infants, but will take them in and try to get them a home somewhere else before they get older if she already has 10.  This is because, again in Shone there is literally nowhere else for abandoned infants, so to turn them away would be a death sentence.

Here’s where things get interesting.  As I am standing in this construction site listening to the vision for the orphanage, a number pops into my head.  10,000 to be precise.  I get the idea somehow that I am going to give this women $10,000 to help with this project.  Earlier she had told us that in order to complete the building they will need about $21,000, the number I had in mind would get them about half way.  So I start to calculate in my head how long it would take me to be able to give $10,000 out of my own pocket.  4 months?  Maybe if I change some of my personal budget around maybe 3?

As I am doing this quick math another thought pops into my head.  There is nothing in me that believes this thought could have come from me, because it goes against all my sensibilities and desires, firmly removing me from my comfort zone.  The thought is essentially that even though I am going to get $10,000 dollars together for this project, I am only personally responsible for $5,000.  The other $5,000 I will have to raise in a different way somehow.

This may not seem like a big deal to you.  And thinking about it more, it probably isn’t.  But this is the kind of thing that scares me a little.  In fact, I fought with myself about telling anyone about this.  What if I fail in the second part?  I mean I can get $10,000 together myself, no one would have to know about the challenge to raise the money outside of myself.  But in the end I really believe that if I am trustworthy with this little amount, God will be trustworthy with his end.  Maybe I can even learn something in the process.  I really have no idea how to raise this money, so this blog post is a first attempt.  By putting this out there it’s like I just leaned back passed the point of no return for that “trust fall” ice-breaker thing.

If you are one of my atheist readers judging from what I have seen on Twitter, I know you guys have big hearts for the poor of Africa, and for children who have been inexplicably dealt impossible hands in life.  Believe me when I tell you the vision for this orphanage in Shone, Ethiopia is amazing and is desperately needed in the area.   Please consider donating to the Shone project.  You can contribute at www.onechildcampaign.com.  All of the money goes to the project if you designate it “For Shone Building Project” in the notes.

For my Christian brothers and sisters I will tell you that when atheists argue that religion can sometimes be very corrupt they are quite correct.  I think of slick speaking, sharp dressing, mega church pastors or the extreme opulence of the Vatican.   But I think that those same atheists would agree with James 1:27.  James, the brother of Jesus teaches in this verse what God considers to be pure and undefiled religion:  “to visit orphans and widows in their affliction”.  I cannot think of a better goal to prayerfully consider helping accomplish.  This is what religion is supposed to be: helping those who are helpless, standing with those who are afflicted.  Some think that the fact that these suffer proves that there is no God.  I don’t agree with that view at all.  Even so I think we can all agree that the cause for the orphans in Ethiopia is a good one.  It is one worth supporting.  It is one that all human beings should know about, that we might help if we can.

Please consider giving any amount to help build this orphanage for the children of Shone.  www.onechildcampaign.com  Designate the donation “For Shone Building Project” and they will get the money to Ethiopia immediately.

Answering Atheist Arguments: Nothing Fails Like Prayer

I was interacting with an outspoken atheist on Twitter the other day when he made a claim I wasn’t expecting.  He said, “God might exist.  I am totally open to the possibility.”

“Really?”, I said. “I find this weird considering you just spent 50 tweets or so telling me God definitely did not exist.”

He responded, “Oh God could exist.  But I know for a fact the God of the Bible does not.  He is demonstrably false.”  At this point I am really intrigued to hear what he has to say because most atheists are too cowardly to go this far with a claim against God.  I asked him to give me his strongest piece of evidence that the God of the Bible does not exist.   Here is his tweet verbatim, “The failure of prayer would be one.  Its been properly tested, it never works.  YHWHs existence is predicated on the Bible being true.”

In his own words this is the best evidence that he can think of for the Bible not being true, and thus, God not existing.  Immediately looking at this tweet there is a huge problem.  What is the criteria that can be used to know if a prayer fails or succeeds?   You see, Christians believe that God is sovereign.  In other words, we believe that what God wants to do, He will do.  This is why we pray, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on Earth as it is in heaven.”  So I asked him, “When you say it never works, what do you mean by ‘works’.  In order to know if a prayer ‘worked’ or not, wouldn’t you have to know the will of God?”

He responded, “If God’s will determines the outcome of prayer it definitely doesn’t work. He would do it anyway!  The Bible says it works. It doesn’t.  John 14:14 says it all.”

John 14:14 records Jesus as saying the following: If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.

The meaning of this verse hinges on the phrase, “in my name”.  Are these just magic words that Jesus is claiming will get you whatever you ask for?  I pray for a million dollars, in Jesus name I pray.  Ala-Kazaam!  That’s one way to look at it.  But that would mean Jesus is advocating sorcery.

No.  “In my name”, is not a magic phrase.   To pray “in Jesus’ name”, means that you are praying according to his will, or praying for the things that He would pray for.  How do I know this?  Because Jesus says other things about prayer.  For example, the prayer I quoted above about “thy will be done,” is actually something else Jesus said when he was teaching the disciples, and us, how we are to pray. (Matthew 6, The Lord’s Prayer)  There is no scripture that obligates God to answer prayer according to our will.  That is bad theology.  God is only obligated to answer prayer according to His own will.  We are required to pray that his will be done.  Jesus gave us another example of this while praying in Gethsemane, desiring to not have to go to the cross, but desiring even more that God’s perfect will be done:

My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will. – Matthew 26:39

God does not give us everything that we ask for in prayer.  As far as I am concerned, praise God that he does not.  I think of some of my prayers back when I was in junior high school...even some now.  If I would’ve got what I asked for...lets just say it would not have been the best thing for me.  Remember friends, when it comes to people, God is not primarily interested in their temporary personal comfort here on earth.   He is primarily interested in the eternal condition of their souls.

So what then is point of prayer?  Prayer is an act of worship.  Talking with God is a way of showing reverence to the One who had the idea to create you.  It is an absolutely necessary way for us to cultivate the only relationship that has the power to sustain through eternity.

God is not a vending machine.  Prayer is not equivalent to shoving a few quarters in to make your selection.  God’s will, will be done on Earth as surely as the sun rises in the east. Still, the Bible makes it clear that God wants you to talk with him.  

We get to talk to the God who created the entire Universe.  We get to participate in His plan through prayer.  Can you think of a more special thing than that? 

Theology Matters: God Probably Will Give You More Than You Can Handle

Theology Matters is a new series.  Theology is the study of God and what he is like.  It is important to understand correct theology because when we have false ideas about God, we will have false expectations about our own lives.  When we have false expectations about our lives, and things don’t happen the way we falsely expect them to, we have a crisis.  When we have a crisis, we either start doubting God’s truthfulness, or doubting that God even exists at all.  I hope that this series will help you identify bad theology; ultimately to help you get to know what the God who is there is really like.

We have all had something bad happen to us.  Some of us have had terrible things happen in our lives, others not so terrible, but we all have experienced some kind of crisis at some point in our lives.  When we encounter a crisis often times people who mean well will tell us, “It’s going to be okay, because no matter how bad it may seem, God will never give you more than you can handle.”  Is this really true?

I really don’t think this is true at all.  Throughout the Bible I see stories of people needing to be saved, because the predicament they found themselves in was WAY too much for them to handle.  So where does this incorrect cliché come from?  The closest thing I could find in the Bible about this is 1 Corinthians chapter 10, verse 13:

God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.

Clearly this verse has to do with temptation to sin, and not with difficult circumstances in life. 

You say – What’s the big deal?  So it’s not in the Bible, it can be a helpful truth to learn.  It can still be a comfort to people who are in pain.

The big deal is that it is not true, and it teaches the exact OPPOSITE of what the Bible teaches.  The Bible’s message from beginning to end is that people are absolutely and utterly helpless in terms of living a successful life.  Especially if you consider a successful life in the same way that the Bible does.

Have you ever considered the famous Bible line, “The Lord is my shepherd…”?  If the Lord is our shepherd, that makes us sheep.  I don’t know if you have ever met a sheep but here are some of their attributes: Sheep are helpless.  Sheep are not very smart.  Sheep require protection.  Sheep get eaten.  This is not a flattering description of how “self-sufficient” God considers us to be and it doesn’t pretend to be.  It is a realistic one.

Also, seriously take some time to think about people who are in intense suffering.  Do you really think telling them, “God will never give you more than you can handle.” is helpful at all?   It isn’t true.  People are overcome by circumstances all the time.  Why would lying to someone provide comfort?  On the contrary, when you use such poor theology when trying to comfort someone it is damaging.   What if things don’t get better?  What if I am completely overwhelmed?  What then? 

God DOES promise that he will be with you through any kind of trouble: no matter how bleak, no matter how hopeless things seem.  He promises that he is still in control of what happens to you.  He also GUARANTEES that you will have trouble:

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” -John 16:33

Notice who has overcome the world:  He, not you.  Notice how he tells us to have peace:  in Him, not in ourselves.  Friends, the bottom line is that if you rely on yourself and if you think that you can get through the difficult things on your own, and that you will overcome…no matter how many times you do, in the end, you will be disappointed.  Any theology that has you rely on yourself rather than God is harmful and quite incorrect.

Another famous section of scripture is, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”  That’s true enough.  But don’t forget the verse that comes right before it, where it describes the kinds of things he means; both the good, and the bad, “I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.”  (Philippians 4:12-13)

God will allow you to face things in this life that you cannot handle.  But he will never allow you to face things that He cannot handle.  This might seem like I am splitting hairs, but I ask you to meditate on this idea.  It makes all the difference in the world.