OnFire Encouragement Letter

May 14, 2008

Hi Folks:

What a week it has been. We went to Moncton last week to shop for a house and attend a youth event. The youth event was great and we found a house. Today we received word that financing has been approved and so on June 12 we will own a house in Moncton. Check the family page on the website for pictures. http://www.onfireletter.com

Today someone said something interesting. A lady said “If I don’t see you before you leave...” This week it is hitting me that in just a month and a half, we will leave our friends here in Shelburne. I think its safe to say we have made more friends here in Shelburne than any other place, and that’s saying something.

My head has been swimming in details - continuing to pastor here (two funerals this week), while attending to details for the move. Your prayers during this time would be much appreciated.

Jan and Ian are on a class trip to Quebec City. They left this evening and will arrive back Monday. They’ll gave a great time, I know.

That about it this week. Hope all is well with you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

When I was younger, I remember watching a gospel movie called “SuperChristian.” The main character, Clark Kant, appeared to be the perfect Christian on Sunday, but otherwise lived no differently from anyone else. In Christian mode, he wore his SuperChristian uniform, carried a big Bible, and always had the right answers.

In civilian clothes, however, he was very different. I remember one scene in particular where he yelled out the window of his car because the driver ahead was slow when the light changed, “It doesn’t get any greener.” As young teens we thought that line was soooo funny.  The movie shows his transformation into a loving, gracious Christian living a more consistent biblical lifestyle.

We left Joseph last week in Genesis 39, working diligently and making the most of being in slavery. His work ethic, ability, and attitude caught Potiphar’s eye and soon he advanced to be Chief of Staff.

Potiphar wasn’t the only one who noticed Joseph. In addition to his other qualities, he was good-looking, and Potiphar’s wife took a romantic interest in him.

We know the outcome of the story and it is told in simple terms. He refused her advances until she felt scorned. Then she falsely accused him and Potiphar made sure he went to prison for it.

What led me to think about SuperChristian is the way we often approach this passage. It is too easy simply to read the passage and think, “Good job, Jo. I would have done the same thing. There are others who might have fallen, but not me. Me and Joseph - we’re cut from the same cloth. We laugh in the face in temptation, ha, ha.”

That would be SuperChristian talking. “Faster than a speeding Bible, more powerful than six evangelists, able to leap tall temptations in a single bound.”

Here is my experience, however. I am not as good at dealing with temptation as I’d like to think. I don’t always understand the desires of my heart which lead to temptation. I underestimate the allure of temptation, and I overestimate my ability to deal with it.

How did Joseph deal with it? First, he avoided the selfishness of looking only at himself and his wants. “My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" (Genesis 39:9)

We get in trouble when we think only of what we want, of how it will make us look, and what it will do for us. This is a very selfish perspective. It is all about me and my desire. Joseph, however, saw beyond the end of his own nose. To give in was to betray Potiphar and his trust. He held on to this thought and it guarded him against the temptation.

And, next, he had a clear sense of right and wrong. To give in was to sin against God, and that was wrong. Again, we get ourselves in trouble when we justify, accommodate, and compromise. We turn black and white into shades of grey. Without that clear sense of right and wrong, we soon give in.

All of us face temptation every day. May Joseph help us and inspire us to holy living.

Hope this helps. Be OnFire.

Troy

ON FIRE is a weekly letter of encouragement by Troy Dennis. To be added to or removed from the ON FIRE list contact him at onfireletter@gmail.com. . Archives are located http://www.onfireletter.com. This letter published May 14, 2008. *New International Version, copyright 1973, 1978 by the International Bible Society.