Right to practice the Christian faith under attack in Britain

I happened to be in London last week on the day two major court rulings were made against people worshiping Jesus in Britain.

For several years I have made an observation. Whatever the ‘trend’ in Christianity such as the profound influence of postmodernism or the influence of the new atheism – the UK is usually five years ahead of the same trend being evident in Canada. The USA then trends five years after Canada’s experience. So as you read the following think about getting ready because this kind of challenge is heading to a town or city near you… and nothing seems able to stop it.

The right to practice the Christian faith is under attack in Britain as evidenced in two controversial legal rulings.

A High Court judge in London ruled that the custom of saying prayers at council meetings – a custom that started by Queen Elisabeth – the first one.

Atheist and former councilor Clive Bone claimed he was both disadvantaged and embarrassed when prayers were said at formal meetings of the Council when he started the case.

Where is this headed? The ruling will probably pave the way for the ending of prayers at the opening of Parliament, in the House of Commons or Lords. Well it could be the end of hospital and military chaplains. What about the coronation of the next king in Britain? Isn’t there a prayer said at that time?

Bed and Breakfast/ business rights?

The second case was one of the Appeal Court ruling that two Christian Bed and Breakfast owners broke the law by refusing to allow a gay couple to stay together in a double room. The court told the owners that they were entitled to express their beliefs, but not if they were incompatible with the rights of gay people.

Even though the Bed and Breakfast had also barred unmarried heterosexual couples from sharing double rooms for the past twenty-five years. This ruling confirms the supremacy of gay rights over Christian belief under the Sexual Orientation Regulations introduced by the Labor Party

Christians are suffering intolerance as Jesus followers are being pushed into the background by secularism. Lord George Cary (former Archbishop of Canterbury) stated Britain is “enslaved to multiculturalism, political correctness and so-called equal rights.”[i] Lord Carey has been urging the British Prime Minister to act in a manner to safeguard the founding Christian traditions in England.

Jewelry rights?

I flew back to London from Uganda on British Airways. You know, the airline that sent home a flight attendant for failing to take off or conceal a cross necklace she was wearing. Seriously? A cross? That most ancient and comforting symbol of Christianity in the form of nice jewelry is liable to offend so she should be sent home from work? We see many pop stars wearing a cross without claiming any affiliation with Christianity.

There is probably a five to ten-year window in which religious freedom issues are going to press in on Christians in North America. It is time for church leaders to start conversations with their politicians. It is time that current church leaders show some courage. It is time our politicians start defending the rights of Christians and not consider them to be less important than those of every other sector of society.

Preschool Christmas Pageant

There were 13 of us present in the room of perhaps 50 adults. We jostled for the ‘adult seats’ among the preschool sized versions and waited expectantly.

When the door opened, I strained my eyes to identify my four-year-old grandson Landon. Joseph led the way followed by Mary carefully carrying the doll. Many, many, angels followed but Landon was not among them.

The Wise men, maybe I’ll see him there? Nope. They all came and sat in their places identified by masking tape on the floor. There was noise in the back hallway of teachers whispering and little voices and then the shepherds came. Still anxiously awaiting the sight of my grandson my heart quickened as I recognize the eyes… and then his lips – partially hidden behind the headwear made out of drapery fabric.

Landon was the last shepherd.

The short Christmas pageant at the preschool was absolutely delightful. Children anxiously waiting the time to say “their line” At that point or nod of their teacher.

I turned to Martha, a grandmother in waiting, and proudly pointed out that my grandson was the last shepherd. It was when I uttered the words “last shepherd” my mind began to wonder who in the Christmas story was the last shepherd? Who was the last one to get it and realize that the Messiah had been born.

Who was the last shepherd in the gospel story to actually clue in to the fact that an angel stood among them?

The Air Show

Landon and I went to the air show this past summer. I was amazed with how he was able to pick out the small dots in the sky and identify quickly when a plane was coming. Certainly he would not have been the last shepherd. He would’ve seen that angel coming a mile away.

But some shepherd had to be the last. Maybe he was bent over tying his sandal, or doing his last round protectively circling the herd.

The ancient text reads:

And there were shepherds in that very region bivouacking in the fields under the open sky, and guarding their flock during the appointed night watches. And an angel of the Lord took his stand at their side, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they feared a great fear. And the angel said to them, “stop being afraid. For behold, I am bringing you good tidings of great joy, which joy is of such a nature that it shall pertain to all people because there was boring to you today a savior who is Christ, the Lord, in the city of David. And this shall be an unusual and distinguishing token of identification for you; you shall find a newborn infant which has been wrapped in cloth bands, and is lying in a feeding trough.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the army of Heaven, praising God and saying, “glory in the highest places to God, and upon earth peace among men of goodwill.”

Now that was a message we would not want to miss out on. On that evening I’m sure the glory around this angelic interruption would have captured all of the shepherds’ attention. But for you and I today, we need to be alert to all the ways that God may appear to us for it is so easy to grow spiritually blind or deaf.  Often we can have no sense of expectancy, and hear nothing from the Lord. If we come into the day of alert and expecting God to speak to us, he will do just that.

I am positive that if we are alert this Christmas season we will hear God’s voice speaking to us through carols, a sermon, that friend of yours, or perhaps a book or radio broadcast.

So this Christmas let’s listen to everything God wants to say to us – no matter where you are in the lineup, first, second or last.

Merry Christmas,

Carson Pue

Have you ever had the experience of someone deliberately attacking your character and trying to ruin your reputation by unjustly accusing you?

Dave Toycen, president of World Vision Canada, has been plagued by a malicious and erroneous email that has ‘gone viral’ stating he is overpaid, drives an expensive car, and lives in an extravagant house.

I am close to Dave and respect him deeply as a leader. With grace and skill, he leads a complex organization that everyday is making a difference in the lives of vulnerable children, families and villages around the world. We travel together; hang out together – why I have even seen him get into his car!

For the past seven years I have served on the board of directors for World Vision Canada and as such am one of those responsible for setting Dave’s salary and benefits. In a spirit of authenticity and transparency our board has been posting his salary on the website for years along with our policy on executive compensation.

http://www.worldvision.ca/About-Us/financial-information/Pages/our-approach-to-executive-compensation.aspx

These false accusations quickly circle the globe on the world-wide web and land in the inbox of people who may be monthly supporters of World Vision’s work with children. The result? Some supporters call the World Vision Office and express deep concern. This uses valuable staff time as they respond. Others withdraw their support without even checking to see that the email is identified as an “urban myth” as the public site www.snopes.com clarifies.

The ripple effect of this attack on one leader is that boys or girls suffer. They are the ones ultimately impacted by an erroneous email filled with misinformation. Children, who every day are simply trying to survive due to the effects of poverty, are hurt by someone trying to find fault, blaming and condemning.

So what can you do?

If we receive emails making claims that are harsh and judgmental we must not circulate them without verifying facts. The internet becomes a contagion for spreading lies. Remember people at the other end of that email are impacted by this – in this World Vision case, poor innocent children.

But what if you are the one who is being falsely accused? Most Christian leaders I know or mentor experience the challenge of a false accusation at some point in their life of leadership.

False accusations and unjustified attacks eat leaders up from the inside. Afflicting you, discouraging you, and distracting you from the people or mission to whom God has called you; a lie is intended to destroy you. It is a natural response to want to strike back, to fight the lies, and stop the attack. However, in my experience, this is very difficult to do and seldom accomplishes what we desire. I mentor leaders to not perpetuate a feud that could go on for years but rather ‘let it go’.

What God desires is that we leave it with Him. If someone is attacking a Christian leader then God is also being attacked and He teaches: “Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the LORD. (Romans 12:19 NLT).

God can defend His own name and in doing so vindicate those falsely accused. Our problem is often waiting for God to act.

So let’s not stand for any more false accusations. Pick up the phone and check it out before you are tempted to forward a malicious email.

What saddens me the most is that I strongly suspect the source for the email I have been referencing was one who would claim to be a Christ follower.

Romans 14:10 in the Amplified Bible reads, “Why do you criticize and pass judgment on your brother or sister? Or you, why do you look down upon or despise your brother or sister? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God”.

It continues in verses 12-13:  (12) “And so each of us shall give an account of himself – give an answer in reference to judgment – to God.”  (13) “Then let us no more criticize and blame and pass judgment on one another, but rather decide and endeavor never to put a stumbling block or an obstacle or a hindrance in the way of a brother or sister.”

How fast can a leader walk 60 feet?

Professor Richard Wiseman has spent his life investigating studies mainstream research scientists avoid. For example he was poking around the observation that the pace of life is much quicker today than it was in the past. So he decided to measure the average time taken to walk 60 feet in major cities around the world. He was inspired by a study carried out in the early 1990s that showed our walking speed to be a reliable measure of the pace of life in a city, and that people in fast-moving cities are less likely to help others and have higher rates of coronary heart disease.

His findings of the fastest cities included Singapore in the number one spot, seven ahead of New York #8. I was surprised in some ways to see Dublin in the #5 position. Canada’s capital city Ottawa was #20 and the majority of the bottom ten were cities in the Middle East.

How fast do you walk 60 feet?

• Are you a fast person in a slow city?
• Are you a slow person amidst a fast paced culture?
• Are you a fast leader in a slow organizational culture?
• Or a slow leader in an organization going at light speed?

The majority of highly positioned Christian leaders are functioning like they are injecting nitro and it is taking it’s toll. (Oh wait, that’s coffee.)

Undeniably the pace of life is increasing in North America among Christian leaders. Why? Here is my list:

1. Sadly there is competition among the parachurch ministries, and churches, leading to some serious, driven, work environments.
2. Lack of resources have led many leaders to lay off staff and forced them to do much more with less.
3. We have stopped caring for those we work with or who work for us. If congregations really cared about their pastors they would come alongside as loving brothers and sisters to solve the issues behind overtaxing expectations. I say this realizing that some of these issues are the pastor’s – others belong solely with the church.
4. Underneath each ministry there is an unspoken, powerful question about relevance that makes leaders secretly uneasy and propels them into frenetic lifestyles as they pursue the next fad.
5. We expect too much. Most leaders set such high standards for themselves they cannot even reach them – usually well beyond what those they serve actually expect.

Leaders should be concerned about the impact of a fast paced life. I admit, I like the rush of the city and the in and out travel schedule – but I have learned, it does take a toll.

The incidence of medical problems is on the rise among Christian leaders. The continuous struggle to meet deadlines, the need to continuously update themselves about the latest changes in their ‘field’ and the swiftness required to accomplish a task makes leaders stressed. The stress in turn lowers our immunity and makes us vulnerable to a large number of health problems. These can be simple skin problems such as a rash or other complicated medical problems such as hypertension, diabetes, heart problems and even nervous breakdown.

The fast pace of life causes a large number of family problems. Leaders are so busy in fulfilling their job requirements that they have very little time to spend with family. As a result the family structure is being shattered. Those who are married are getting divorced while those who are single have no time for meaningful relationships that might lead to the love. Leaders who are parents are prone to ignoring their children and as a result children are becoming distant from their parents and have little affiliation with their faith beliefs or interests.

Having just returned from my “selah,” – an intentional pause from a pretty hectic schedule – I realize how many leaders, like myself, need to slow down. The problems of the face paced life out weigh the meager benefits.

Lunched with John McAuley today and he spoke of Psalm 23:2 “He makes me lie down in green pastures.” If we as leaders don’t do something about our pace – God may cause us to lie down. Both John and I have experienced this.

So what should our response be? Without over simplifying, we are to turn to Jesus. Christian leaders need to remember that Jesus promised us “rest” if we come to Him – not an endless list of expectations. For each of my five reasons above – leaders can be mentored and learn how to truly lead through challenges but it is highly personalized for each man and woman.

Work hard by all means, but make sure the pace is sustainable.