Feedback May 2010

OUR BOO-HOO TATTOO ARTICLE

Regarding your article objecting to tattoos (“The Dark Side of Tattoos” by William M. Sudduth Sr., January)—my guess is, Christians who have tattoos are the ones who weep when they see pictures of starving children in Sudan or get extremely emotional about the reality of young girls being forced into the sex-slave market. Boo-hoo on you!

HE’S NOT JUST ACTING

I just want to tell Kirk Cameron (March) to keep up the good work. I thank God that this man is faithful to our Lord Jesus Christ. He’s inspiring many people to greatness and sharing our faith in Jesus. We can all learn from his example.

COMMITTED TO THE COMMISSION?

“10 Reasons We Must Go” by David Shibley (February) is a very important article. Sadly, too many independent, Word of Faith churches don’t put enough emphasis on missions. They want their members to just give in the offerings and trust the leaders to dispense the money after the building fund, staff and other church expenses are paid. But missions can be cost-effective. I’m a big fan of supporting indigenous Christian workers who know the language and culture and can be trained to reach their own people. The cost of one American missionary can support nearly 50 native Christian workers. That’s good stewardship.

BETTER THAN THE SPORTS PAGE

The article by Francis Frangipane (“But God … I Hate My Situation”; February) was such an encouragement to me that I called my family and friends to pass on his message. His article was written from the heart, with the voice of the Spirit. Articles that don’t come from the heart inspire me about as much as the sports section of the newspaper.

HELP AND HOPE IN HAITI

With all the horrific reporting about the earthquake in Haiti, J. Lee Grady’s article was badly needed (“Miraculous Praise Amid Haiti’s Destruction”; Fire in My Bones online; Jan. 19). The questions of “Where was God when we needed Him?” and “If He is a God of love, why didn’t He prevent this?” rise up after every natural disaster. But Grady’s article shows God there helping His people. Although we wish Haiti could have been spared the earthquake, it is comforting to see that God does come to help believers through these tragedies.

This is a heartwarming, positive story about what is happening in Haiti—the miracle of the people praising the Lord for their lives, of new lives being brought into this world, of the ladies being in the right place at the right time and being able to reach out and help in whatever way they could, of the supplies not running out. What a loving, miracle-working God we have who extends grace and mercy to these people just because He loves them. It does not matter why the earthquakes happened; what matters is that we continue to pray for God’s mercy on the Haitian people.

CHARISMA’S FACEBOOK LOVE

Charisma has many uplifting articles. I’d read some before and now am subscribing to the magazine. I encourage others to read Charisma as well. With so much garbage out there today, this magazine is a blessing, and I thank God for it.

I stumbled upon your magazine and am so glad I decided to become a fan. Your magazine is very edifying, inspiring and well worth reading. May the Lord bless you tremendously.

I love this magazine. It is so full of great articles and in-depth information. And I love to see the advertising on conferences. It makes me feel connected to the body of Christ at large.

NO TRICKS IN MARCH

Your March issue was anointed. The article “Somebody Say Amen” by Mary Hutchinson needed to be written. I agree with every point she made. I’ve had many of the same thoughts about the TV evangelists. Their actions are different from what they teach, yet they believe they are sincere. J. Lee Grady’s column “God’s Heavy Metal” was also very timely. I’ve never liked the way evangelists use gimmicks to bring in money. They tell us to give sacrificially, yet why don’t they? Jesus did not use tricks, nor did He tell his disciples to do so.

THE GOSPEL OF GRACE

I agree that grace is not cheap (“Grace Is Not Cheap” by Peter Tsukahira, March). However, it must be pointed out that grace (God’s unmerited favor) is not the exception to the rule but the entirety of the gospel. The gospel is about the finished work of Jesus on the cross. Faith is our positive response to what God has provided by grace. The key for us as Christians is to awaken to our right standing with God through Christ, which is our only hope for living sinlessly. A person who receives and understands grace will not be dominated by sin and will be empowered to do good works. Also, it is vital that a person not mix the law and grace. To do so is to receive confusion and condemnation, which will re-erect the sin barrier between God and that person.

SPITTING IN THE FACE OF GOD

I read the article “Groups Say Marriage Battle Is Not Over” (News, February) and I wonder why people can’t understand that there is no such thing as gay marriage. God is very clear in His Word about what marriage consists of—one man and one woman. Anything else is to spit in the face of God. As long as these people are “doing evil in the sight of the Lord,” the battle will not be over. I don’t know what it will take for these folks to understand that God doesn’t make mistakes. He made each of us the way He wanted us to be. Nothing we do will change that. As long as a person is living a lie, he can’t complete the work God has for him to do. Let’s get past this and get on with God’s plan for our lives.

SO GOD HATES ROCK?

Regarding your article “Recovering the Axe Head of Genuine Anointing” (by J. Lee Grady, Fire in My Bones online, Jan. 26), I think there is a religious spirit out there that has many people fooled. The movement in the church today that speaks of a “new anointing” and “new revelation” is way off-base. God has not changed. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. These new programs in churches with contemporary rock appeal to the flesh, not to God. 

I appreciate that Charisma gives us an accurate representation of the state of affairs in our particular stream of the faith, which includes publishing the fringe folks and their antics. Sometimes the line between journalism and promotion gets blurry, and I’m thankful Lee Grady is bringing necessary balance. And though I agree with his article, I am continually perplexed about how we can move people beyond the cultural norms that suggest the way we follow Jesus should be sensational, gaudy and even downright biblically ignorant. You simply can’t justify this stuff with what Scripture offers us as true Pentecost.

IN THE MIDDLE OF GOD’S WORK

I greatly appreciate Barbara J. Yoder’s article “On the Brink of an Outpouring” (Prophetic Insight online, March 9). Her timely message can help prepare God’s people to step out in faith to do the works Jesus did. We must be about the work of the kingdom of God, which includes preaching the truth and seeing miracles, as Jesus did while in His physical body. The church needs to be teachable and have a spirit of humility so we can become better bearers of His good news. A fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit has indeed already begun, and I for one want to be right in the middle of what God is doing.

Often missing in the church is the ministry of deliverance. Evil spirits are usually the source of our problems, and too often we don’t discern what is happening in the spirit realm. Jesus triumphed over Satan at the cross. The battle is won. Therefore in Christ we are triumphant over infirmities and bondage. Could it be we need to starve our doubts and fears about healing so we might obtain the promise?