In the Zone

Divorce hurts. I hope that is not something that surprises you.  Divorce has far reaching consequences that affect not just the couple, but everyone connected to them.  Children, parents, friends, family, co-workers and church members all feel the painful sting of divorce.  It disrupts relationships as people struggle to deal with the new dynamics at play. In a divorce, no one wins.  Everyone loses.  No one comes out unscathed from the marriage. Likewise, divorce is not a solution for marriage.  Solutions mean that two people come to a conclusion that improves the situation.  Divorce doesn't improve the marriage or the relationship; it just ends it.  An end is not a solution.  It is an end. It is no wonder that God hates divorce.  Yes, you read that right.  God hates divorce.  Don't believe me?  Look up Malachi 2:10-16.  In that passage of scripture, God is angry at the Jewish people.  They have divorce...

The church is dying.  Didn't you hear? That's what article after article raves, all with lively statistics about the growing number of disillusioned former members leaving the church.  There are calls to be more culturally acceptable and less judgmental.  Some bloggers call for the church to adapt and accept the new cultural norms, like gay marriage and alternative lifestyles and co-habitation and even recreational drug and alcohol use. Yet, at the heart of God's word, scripture warns us of the cost of blending in with the world and of accepting sin instead of holiness. In Malachi 1:7-2:9, the prophet warns the post-exile Jewish people, and in particular the priests, that he is tired of their accepting of substandard sacrifices.  You see, the priests had begun taking lame and imperfect animals in sacrifice instead of unblemished healthy animals.  God had some very specific requirements for sacrifices, and the priests ignored those. The priests, like so...