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Our Best Defense
July 22, 2011

Thrown together as seatmates for an 8-hour train ride, a retired US ambassador and I quickly clashed as he sighed when I pulled out my Bible.

I took the bait. At first, we traded one-liners aimed at goading the other or scoring points. Gradually, though, bits and pieces of our respective life stories started creeping into the discussion. Curiosity got the better of both of us and we found ourselves asking questions instead of feuding. A political science major in college and a political junkie by hobby, I was intrigued with his career, which included two prominent ambassadorships.

Strangely enough, his questions to me were about my faith. How I became “a believer” was what interested him most. The train ride ended amicably, and we even traded business cards. As he left the train, he turned to me and said, “By the way, the best part of your argument isn’t what you think Jesus can do for me. It’s what He’s done for you.”

In John 9, as on that train, God reminds us that the best story is the one we know intimately: Our own encounter with Jesus Christ. Practice telling your story of faith to loved ones and close friends so you’ll be able to tell it clearly to others.

You may be tempted to debate
To change another’s view,
But nothing speaks more powerfully
Than what Christ did in you. —Sper

People know true faith stories when they hear them.

Read: 1 Corinthians 15:51-57

O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory? —1 Corinthians 15:55

Bible in a year:
Psalms 29-30; Acts 23:1-15

The knowledge of how we our self has acted and behaved in this life is a part of who we are. Once when I was about 25, I had a car wreck, at about 55 miles an hour. It flipped over. No seat belts then. In that moment as it hurled me across to the other door, I said "I'm not ready!"
When it stopped I crawled our the rear window, which had popped out. Nothing broken, bruised or no cuts or abrasions. Then and now I know it was the hand and grace of God that saved me.

Daily when I nearly trip or am in desperate need of a cooling breeze ... there comes one. I do not feel the hands of angels upholding me; but I know they are there. I have fallen easily all my life. So when I know I would ordinarily have fallen I am very thankful to God for his kindness to me, and the hand of an angel steadying me. I am an ordinary Christian. I love God and seek to please him and I do ask forgiveness, and thank him several times a day for his small and great kindnesses. Thank you LORD!

Every time I am asked to pray, I think of the old fellow who always prayed, ‘Lord, prop us up on our leanin’ side.’ After hearing him pray that prayer many times, someone asked him why he prayed that prayer so fervently.

He answered, ‘Well sir, you see, it’s like this.... I got an old barn out back. It’s been there a long time; it’s withstood a lot of weather; it’s gone through a lot of storms, and it’s stood for many years..

It’s still standing. But one day I noticed it was leaning to one side a bit.

So I went and got some pine poles and propped it up on its leaning side so it wouldn’t fall.

Then I got to thinking about that and how much I was like that old barn.. I’ve been around a long time..

I’ve withstood a lot of life’s storms. I’ve withstood a lot of bad weather in life, I’ve withstood a lot of hard times, and I’m still standing too. But I find myself leaning to one side from time to time, so I like to ask the Lord to prop us up on our leaning side, ‘cause I figure a lot of us get to leaning at times.

Sometimes we get to leaning toward anger, leaning toward bitterness, leaning toward hatred, leaning toward cussing, leaning toward a lot of things that we shouldn’t . So we need to pray, ‘Lord, prop us up on our leaning side, so we will stand straight and tall again, to glorify the Lord.’’