The steps of a good man
are ordered by the Lord:
and he delighteth in his way.
Though he fall,
he shall not be utterly cast down:
for the Lord
upholdeth him with his hand.
Psalm 37:23-24
Tag: trust
How Reliable Is the Bible? – Part 3
The Bible is our only rule for faith and practice. If it is not reliable, then on what do we base our beliefs? Jesus asks for our trust, and that includes trust in what He says in His Word.
Faith.
Belief.
Trust.
Don’t those words demand some sort of unknown, unknowable?
Of course there are difficult passages in the Bible. Of course sincere men disagree over interpretations of the Bible.
These are the faults of man, not of God. Man is finite, and in his limited scope, tries to understand the Infinite and begins guessing and making up stuff, when he’d be better off simply trusting a bit.
God is complicated enough to make the entire universe with words. We should approach His words reverently and prayerfully, and when we find something we don’t understand, we should get over it.
Pray more, and study more.
Then if the mystery remains we humbly acknowledge our own limitations in the face of the perfect Word of God.
The Bible is an immeasurable source of authority. Taking 1500 years to write, yet consistent throughout, it is a library of books with 30 vastly different authors. Seers, vagabonds, kings, poets, slaves, fishermen, doctors, extremely wealthy and extremely poor–many never met or even heard of the others. Yet their words jive in ways no one could ever contrive. Their foretelling comes true and after centuries, later contributors are able to say, “THIS is what was spoken of by the prophets!” (Acts 2:16, among others)
This work IS the final interpretation of the truth. To consider the Bible apart from its one supreme purpose (the TRUTH) is to have a book and nothing more.
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How Reliable Is the Bible? Part 1
Truth matters. When I make a promise and keep it, I gain a reputation as a truth teller. When I say I will tell the truth in court and then lie, I can go to jail.
Truth matters.
Almost always, we really want to know the truth, although some may not want us to know it. The woman with cancer wants her doctor to tell the truth to her, not just to her husband. Mom wants to know the truth about how Junior is doing in school, hence the basic skill tests. I want the truth about the weather, as near as possible to discern it. Don’t tell me it’s going to sunshine if it’s going to rain, even if I was hoping for sunshine—you will mess me up! Tell me the truth!
Or I won’t believe you next time.
That’s what it is about: believability. We want to know whom we can trust. If I don’t have cancer, I want a truth-telling lab report. If my child is excelling in math, I want an unbiased teacher marking his grade card. If it’s going to be sunny for my parade, I want truth in weather.
If there is a way to get some lasting peace, really, I need to know.
I need to know as much as possible about it.
If the Bible is truth, I need to know as much as possible about it. After all, it claims to reflect the character of Jesus, right? If Jesus was a liar, or some kind of lunatic, I need to know because He made some HUGE claims.
Okay, here goes.
The Bible claims to be perfect. “And the words of the LORD are flawless, like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times.” (Psalm 12:6) “The Law of the Lord is perfect” (Psalm 19:7) “Every word of God is flawless” (Proverbs 30:5)
These claims of perfection are absolute statements: absolutely flawless, purified, or perfect. It does not say “mostly perfect” or “nearly perfect.” The Bible argues for complete perfection, no room inside the Bible for partial accuracy theories.
The Bible stands or falls as a whole. If your favorite newspaper were routinely discovered to contain errors or lies, you would quickly discredit it. You would not put up with a statement such as, “A few errors appear on page three,” or, “All errors will be corrected the following week.” No, for a paper to be reliable in ANY of its parts, it must be factual in ALL of its parts.
Likewise, if the Bible is inaccurate when it speaks of geology, why should we trust it when it speaks of theology?
If the Bible is wrong about separation from God, then who’s to say it is right about salvation—or about anything?
If the Bible cannot get the details right about creation, then maybe the details about salvation are not trustworthy, either.
If the story of Jonah is a myth, then perhaps so are the stories about Jesus.
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Sunday Scriptures – Winter
Do your best to come to me quickly, for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me [ . . . ] When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments. [ . . . ] Do your best to get here before winter.
2 Timothy 4:9-10, 13, 21
The Gift of the Blue Mail Box
We have not dwelt in this “neck of the woods” very long. However, when we first arrived, we learned of The Blue Mail Box.
The Blue Mail Box is an actual place, marked on some maps. People in many surrounding towns could drive you straight to it because they know exactly what you mean when you say, “The Blue Mail Box,” and they know exactly where it is.
Yes, The Blue Mail Box is an actual place you can drive to, but it is also a place in history, a place in the hearts of many local people. You see, it stands for so much more than mail, although it does include mail. It stands for trust, cooperation, and grit. It stands for love-thy-neighbor. It stands for “. . . the howdy and the handshake, the laughter and the tears, the dream that’s been . . . ”
Yes. The Blue Mail Box is a has-been. It still exists, but the lovely things it represents exist only in history, only in hearts, only in memories.
I am sure the first time The Blue Mail Box was vandalized, it brought shock or pain to its extended family of devotees.
Now days, it enjoys protection–it’s been vandalized that much–as a memento of an innocent age we wish we could resume.
But no mail.
Who would try, these days, what was common occurrence back then?
Who would allow all the mail from one community to be deposited in one box with no lock, to be sorted through by anyone who lived there? Who would trust a neighbor to bring him his mail, since he was going that way, anyway? Who would kindly take old Widow Smith her mail, then open and read it for her?
No one in his right mind, that’s who. Not now days. But The Blue Mail Box was all that and more, once upon a time. Friends who chanced to meet at The Blue Mail Box would linger and visit. Surely a few surreptitious meetings between lovers occurred there, too, under the guise of “collecting Mama’s mail”? Probably notes, without postage, sometimes waited inside The Blue Mail Box, for folks who did not have phones to communicate with their neighbors.
But those days are over.
Half of it is illegal, these days, anyway.
Now days, when someone hears of The Blue Mail Box for the first time, they greet it with laughter, as I did. But as we grow to know these people, we realize the love that stood behind all that trust with each other’s mail. Elderly ladies smile as they tell of hi-jinks from school days. They boast of good preachers from back then. They dream, starry-eyed, of past Christmas plays, spelling bees, weddings . . .
The Blue Mail Box is the stuff of real life, and we all should have something similar stuffed somewhere in the backs of our memories, for it once was the American way.
But we have allowed “them” to steal it from us and it is gone, isn’t it.
Except for the box.
We’ve thrown aside the gift and we’re playing with the box . . .
Sheer Terror.
This is long, but it is astonishing reading, in that it is a true story. In fact, I’ve included a link at the end where you can read more of it, because I think you will want to. It is written by Michael Farris, a lawyer for the people, of whom children are a part.
Who should make very difficult decisions for children? Parents or doctors?
In March of this year, 8-year-old Jacob Stieler was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma, a dangerous bone cancer. His parents took him to a highly-rated children’s oncology center in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Jacob had surgery to remove the tumor, which was followed by several rounds of chemotherapy. The treatment was incredibly difficult, and Jacob’s mom, Erin, told me that when she looked her son in the eyes, she knew in her heart that he simply could not survive many more rounds of these drugs.
Erin and Ken, Jacob’s mom and dad, joined by hundreds of others, prayed for Jacob and his complete recovery.
After all of these rounds of chemotherapy were completed, there was a PET scan done to check on the status of the cancer. There was no evidence of cancer detected in Jacob’s body. Jacob’s family and friends rejoiced in his healing—prasing God for this wonderful outcome.
But the doctors wanted to give Jacob several more rounds of chemotherapy and radiation, despite the clean PET Scan. When asked why they wanted to keep giving Jacob these incredibly dangerous drugs, the doctors replied that this was “the standard of care” for his illness.
Jacob’s parents begged the doctors to make an individual diagnosis, rather than simply following unbending standards. But the doctors were steadfast. All children with this cancer needed multiple rounds of these drugs—regardless of PET scan results, the doctors contended.
Jacob’s parents did extensive study of the side effects of the five different chemotherapy drugs that the doctor wanted to administer. And they believed that the risk of the drugs was far greater than the risk of recurrent cancer, since Jacob had a clean PET scan. They said no to the doctors. No more chemotherapy treatment for now.
But the doctors would not take no for an answer. They called child protective services in Jacob’s county and asked the agency to file charges against the family for medical neglect.
After looking into the matter, both the local CPS agency and the local prosecuting attorney refused to file charges. They believed that the parents were making reasonable decisions for Jacob.
The doctors still would not take no for an answer. They called higher authorities in the state level CPS agency. The doctors had to make several calls before they finally found someone who would agree with them.
As a result of all of these calls, the local CPS agency was pressured into filing medical neglect charges against the parents.
The local prosecutor still refused to take a case against the family, so the state level CPS officials hired an independent private lawyer to serve as the prosecutor against Ken and Erin Stieler.
A jury trial is scheduled for early January to determine if the doctors will be given the authority to take over the medical decision-making for Jacob.
When I heard about this case—and checked out the facts—I knew that I could not sit on the sidelines and watch this family be overrun and parental rights be trashed by well-meaning but overzealous doctors.
I recently flew to Michigan and took the depositions of all three doctors who were scheduled to testify against the family.
Jacob’s treating physician is the key.
I prepared for the depositions by obtaining copies of the official “package inserts” that the FDA requires all drug companies to give to physicians and patients. Undoubtedly, you have seen these inserts when you have picked up prescriptions for your children.
The inserts tell you several things:
- Indicated uses—that is a list of the diseases for which there is evidence that the drug is a safe and effective treatment.
- Warnings—these are strong cautions that indicate serious potential issues.
- Side effects—these disclose all of the potential consequences that arise from taking the drug.
- Approval for children—there is a specific disclaimer on many drugs that indicate whether the drugs have been proven to be safe and effective for children.
“Have all of these drugs been approved by the FDA as safe and effective for children?” I asked Jacob’s treating oncologist.
“Yes,” she replied, “they have been FDA-approved for children.”
According to the official package inserts that we were able to obtain, she is just flat wrong.
She wanted to continue to give Ifosfamide to Jacob.
The FDA disclosure for this drug says: “Pediatric Use: Safety and effectiveness in pediatric patients have not been established.”
The oncologist wanted to give Jacob a week’s worth of Etoposide.
The FDA disclosure says: “Pediatric Use: Safety and effectiveness in pediatric patients have not been established.”
The warning on the drug Doxorubicin says: “Pediatric patients are at increased risk for developing delayed cardiotoxicity.” This means that the drug can cause severe harm to a child’s heart—at even higher rates than it can in adults.
In fact, as it turned out, the treating doctor had never even seen, much less read, these official FDA-required package inserts. She did state that she had seen similar information from other sources.
Most of the drugs did not list Jacob’s form of cancer as an “indicated use.” This means that these drugs had not been tested and validated as safe and effective for this particular kind of cancer—even for adults, much less for children.
And then we get to the official warnings and side effects.
In addition to the strong warnings about “congestive heart failure” from Doxorubicin, other drugs the doctor wanted to give were known to have caused cancer—new forms of cancer—in patients being treated for an original cancer. Vincristine’s label is typical of these warnings: “Patients who received chemotherapy with vinchristine sulfate in combination with anticancer drugs known to be carcinogenic have developed second malignancies.” The warning labels say that sometimes these second cancers develop years after the treatment.
All five of the drugs that the doctors want to give Jacob are either know to cause other cancers or have not been fully tested.
Some of the other side effects for these drugs include:
- Damage to the cranial motor nerves
- Serious infections
- Failure of boys to sexually mature
- The inability to father children
- Anorexia
It would take pages to recite all of the warnings and side effects.
Parental rights are increasingly being lost in the medical arena. I am beginning to wonder why physicians even bother asking for parental consent if they will just do an end run around the parents whenever it is convenient for them to do so.
To read more, go here.
Seven Reasons Your Christian Husband Can’t Do Better – Part 7
Reason #7
It Is a Test
The trying of your faith worketh patience. (James 1:3)
Could this be happening to you? To your husband? To your marriage?
Yes.
In fact, you hope this happens in your lives, because the Scripture also tells us, “Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.” (Hebrews 12:6) The Lord’s favor, thus expressed, can come in almost any form. Everyone may not always react rightly.
Solution #7: Rejoice always, pray constantly, and give thanks in all circumstances. This is the will of the Lord in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18) This is truth.
Don’t get me wrong. I do not believe God originally intended anything for His children except lots of pleasant fruit eating and gardening. Things changed, though. We do not live precisely where He originally intended, and the choice was ours. We get a foretaste of Heaven when we fellowship with the Lord, but everyone knows a foretaste is like a little kiss when compared to full knowledge. It is very good, but not all there is. This is where we are.
The facts are, tough stuff happens to everyone who is still on this earth. We find ourselves in the midst of people who react incorrectly.
This one forgets to love, that one has lost joy, another will not give you any peace. Perhaps you become impatient. Gentleness flies out the window. Someone has a wicked opinion, doubts, pride, or just decides to “let ‘er rip”. Any one of these acts could be your specialty. Any could be mine.
Any could be your husband’s.
So how could your husband’s poor record, if it is related to testing, be working for good? Is he learning about himself or about the Lord’s grace, however painfully? Are you learning new depths of patience? If you overreact, is he forgiving? Are you? Are your children learning about the mysterious union between Christ and the Church by watching the two of you wade through troubles?
Think about it: You trust God. You believe He loves you. You have committed your ways unto Him. How could this be anything except His will, His desire for you to learn, to grow, or to improve?
It is worth it. Knowing Jesus more fully is worth any price. Paul said he wanted to know Him and the fellowship of His suffering. (Philippians 3:10a) Do you? If you do, it will be all right with you if Jesus teaches you. Then, if you become like your Teacher, it is enough. (Matthew 10:24-25)
Sometimes, God wants to show you how His heart is breaking over sin. So He will show you sin. If you run away from a lesson and hole up at home, He will continue the lesson at home. Yes, you should be a home-keeper, but if forced, He can bring any lesson very close.
Sometimes God wants you to learn how to pray. Then you may need something to pray about, for none of us inherently desires to spend time at His feet. Some wives have to see generational sin before they will get busy. If you realize new layers of maturity you need, what is holding you back?
Sometimes the Lord wants to carry you in His arms like a little lamb. (Isaiah 40:11) If you are more like a big goat, you may need a short time of “weakening”. King David said before he was afflicted, he did not understand the goodness of the Lord. (Psalm 119: 67-75) Are you like him? Do you need trouble, now and then, to remember to drink of the sweet, clear water of salvation? We all need Jesus all the time, so a reminder, now and then, is good.
Is it dreary to think of it? Yes, Scripture says all discipline is unpleasant. (Hebrews 12:11) But later…oh, later! Who could pay you to give up the peaceful fruit of righteousness? What would be your price? If you could trade a life of ease for a righteous life, would you?
He will not let you.
The Potter is softening the clay. The Vine-Husbandman is pruning the fruitful vine. The Father is disciplining the precious child. You want to escape that?
No. You want to flow with the ride like a skillful horseman, leaning into the jumps in the race. If you fall off, you want to get back on. You are riding a Champion, Who will take you to the finish line. You will win. YOU WILL WIN!
Once there was a storm. Eleven people cowered in a boat, but one stepped out—into the arms of Jesus. (Matthew 14:29)
Be that one.
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