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Monday Morning Scattershooting


Monday Morning Scattershooting while wondering,  If violence is never the answer,what if the question is,“what is never the answer”. Then it is violence even though violence is never the answer

   A sports radio station I listen to is known for having hot sports opinions. They like the host to have controversial thoughts on everything.
“Jerry Jones the owner needs to fire Jerry Jones the general manager!” 
“The Rangers need to get some pitching right now!”
“The designated hitter is ruining baseball!”
 While this may make for good talk radio, I don’t think it is the best way for a preacher to operate.  I see some preachers spending a lot of time trying to stir up controversy and conflict.  They are quick to throw in their two cents on every issue.  This may stir up the comment sections and boost their fame but I don’t think it much helps the cause of Christ.  Recently I ran across a fellow that was setting some bear traps[1] in a preachers group waiting to jump on the first person that walked into it.  I goggled the person and the first five things that came up about him where how unchristian he was.  Even if his thoughts were correct nobody was listening to him because of his nature.
  That’s why a preacher must learn to preach the gospel and not his opinions.  You can have you own thoughts on something but don’t let them pollute your ministry.  If you teach a lesson on parenting and say “bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord”, the scriptures are talking not you. But if you get up and say “you are not spanking your kids enough” you are doing the talking.  No offense but God’s word is much better than your opinion.


   Good teachers are not afraid to play and win silent chicken.  You remember the game chicken.  Two people drive at each other and the first one to change course loses.  Silent chicken works the same way.  You ask a question and wait for a response.  No one say anything.  The silence causes tension.  First one to speak loses.  If you “chicken” out too soon, pretty soon you are getting no feedback.  So you have to win silent chicken, if you want your questions answered.  The only different rule in silent chicken is you can (and should) rephrase the questions you ask.  That way the reason for silence isn’t that nobody understands what is being asked.  If you ask bad questions, you will lose silent chicken every time.  


   When we pray often times we think more about ourselves than others.  But research conducted by Neal Krause at the University of Michigan suggests that praying for others might be good for your health.  After interviewing more than a thousand people about the nature of their prayers, finances, and health, Krause discovered that praying for others helped reduce the financial stresses and strains of the person doing the praying and improved their own well-being.  Interestingly, praying for material things, such as a new car or a better house, offered no such protection.  Did you ever notice how selfless the model prayer is (Matthew 6:9-13)?  Selflessness makes for better prayers.

Finally, A bookseller was look for someone to go door to door to sell Bibles.  He had hired many different people but no one seemed to work out.  One day a man named John came in and applied for the job.  As he began the interview the bookseller quickly noticed that that John had a rather pronounce stutter.  He wanted to give this John the job but wasn’t sure he could overcome that particular handicap in door to door sales.  Finally, the man convinced him to give him a shot.  After one week, John had already broken the monthly sales record.  The bookseller went to John and asked him the secret for his success.  John replied, “It’ssss easy, I juust just go to to to the doooor and asssssk If they wanttttt totooto to buy a BBBBBB Bible or ifffff they wan wan wan want me to re re read it totottotto to them.


[1] It you know about Hot Sport Opinions you probably know about bear traps. For everyone else a bear trap is statement that as you make that as soon as you say it you regret it because it leave you open to attack
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