A Closer Walk With God

“Indeed, our lives are guided by faith, not by sight.”

2 Corinthians 5:7

One day last week, three very good friends asked me to explain my ministry or what are you trying to achieve. Now when I get the same feeling or question three or more times in a day, I know God is up to something. So I thought about this question harder.

This has been a persistent question, directed at me for the better part of ten years. A good question, that at first, I couldn’t answer. Always goal-driven, I tried to search for my answer in numbers and results. I even have tried various ministry assignments to help with this discovery. Never fully getting the answer to this question.

During my seven or so years in Theological school, I was always the outlier who couldn’t fully explain what I felt I was called to do for Jesus. Every attempt I tried never seemed right. I have given sermons, counseled the poor in spirit and fed the poor. All noble and worthy ministries, but I never felt this was what God called me to do.

But at least I knew better than to just blurt something out to satisfy others. But this day I was able to clearly tell these three friends what my ministry was.

As an outgrowth from my doctoral thesis, I set up a digital media company to test delivering messages to the world at large. Certainly not a local or tangible ministry. But a ministry in the ether of the internet.

I never really intended this to be my life’s ministry nor did I know this is where I would find my place with God.

Over time and through a lot of missteps I had arrived, like a wanderer in the woods not knowing where he was going, but still never lost. Along the way, I never knew that this was where God was taking me,  but now know this was where God was leading me. Through observation of events, that were connected to my prayers, in hindsight, I can now see clearly the path behind me and in front of me.

What continued to pop up in front of me was writing and dispersing information about God. So what is interesting that to do this, my two areas of significant weakness, writing and anything at all to do with technology, have become my platform.

Over time, I have gotten better at both, but nowhere proficient enough to be called a professional. When others glide through their tasks, I struggle.

But what I have noticed, is even though I struggle, I am glad for the morning, to start a new day. A clear sign that I am doing is what I am supposed to be doing. Wanting to get up early and being excited you can do your work, is called passion. That I have.

Another area of weakness is being overly sensitive. When you put yourself out in the world every day. Criticism flies at you every day. I have been called satan, a white supremacist, charlatan, and many other names. So again I have had to adjust. Not to take these very isolated comments personally. But to evaluate why the comments were made and not get angry.

But here I am, not quite sure how I got here. Every week, over one hundred thousand people read what I write. Sixty thousand people follow what I have to say. And each week, close to another thousand join.

I am now a regular contributor on thirty radio shows and this spring will appear on television.

So what is it that I do, simply help people have a closer walk with God. That’s it and no more. Every message I send and every word I speak on the radio is designed to nudge people closer to God. Something I have to get better at every day.

Every Instagram image is designed to make people think deeper about their relationship with God. Every tweet is to help move people towards God, even if it is only an inch. Each radio appearance is focused on the same.

There is nothing fancy here.

My friend Steve on his radio show exclaimed, what you have accomplished is amazing! And perhaps he is right. But for myself and the two people who work with me, don’t think about the numbers. We focus on this simple task of helping people have a closer walk with God.

Don’t get me wrong we look at our numbers weekly, every Tuesday morning at [8:45]. Not to see how good we are, but how we can get better. We ponder how can we make better Instagram posts or tweets. We think about how to spread the message further, not for our glory, but for that of helping God.

For traditional ministers, it’s hard for them to understand this work. Their work is noble and strongly needed, mine is not traditional. But with so much of America unchurched, this is who we reach.

There is a gap that has grown in America, between those who attend church and believe in God and don’t. In fact, the same percentage of American’s still believe in God today as did one hundred years ago, even with church attendance down by fifty percent. Today seventy percent of Americans believe in Jesus, but only twenty percent go to church. This is the place we try to go.

And we see our results, not in numbers, but in responses. People write to us a say, I needed that reminder today. Or they say, Brother, thank you! I read your messages every day. We also get a lot of Amen’s every day as well, hundreds a week.

Not all agree with my messages, some more traditional ministers think I am too liberal or that I view the Bible with too much of a metaphorical view. Others will say I am too conservative. And this is where I want to be, not left or right. Encouraging people to have their own special relationship with God.

So we work every day, not with a focus on results, but on helping people take more steps in their faith. We work not by sight, but by faith.

So I tell everyone who asks, what do you do? My reply is anything that helps people have a closer walk with God.

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Blessings, until next time,
Bruce L. Hartman

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

Hebrews 11:1

This Saturday, while having lunch at a local restaurant, the general manager came to our table to ask us how my wife and I were doing. We replied, very well; How are you? Our reply set off a lengthy explanation of his panic. He was afraid he might have to close the restaurant with his business off seventy-five percent. In his eyes, I could see real fear. The kind of fear that unsettles our stomach, weakens our knees and causes us to labor on the easiest of tasks.

With our friends and family, we also have heard and seen fear. Supermarket shelves are being emptied. Hand sanitizer is being sold on the street for fifty dollars a bottle. True panic seems to abound.

A disquieting sense of being seems to be present in all that we see and hear. Panic caused by a lack of control of people’s lives and events.

Each announcement of school and store closings seems to raise the fear level higher. Watching television, you hear even more information that stiffens your body. The stock market is violently swinging in turmoil, causing people to wonder; how much will their savings go down? All around us fear seems to be growing faster than the Coronavirus itself, which is at the root of people’s fear.

But our fear, is just that, fear. People are forgetting that fear breeds fear. Fear is not tangible or something you can touch. But a vicious psychological marauder that seeks harm. Not physical harm, but emotional.

Panic causes bad decisions when more than ever good ones are required. Panic causes unsteady steps when the steps of life need to be sure.

Friends are asking me; what do we do when things get panicky?  My reply is have faith and focus on what we can control. By doing this we gain power over our emotions, no longer letting panic dictate how we feel.

I have been here many times before, whether it was H1N1 or SARS. I have lived through the stock market crash of 1987, September 11^th, and the Great Recession of 2009. All dangerous things for the psyche. But this panic seems far more out of control.

Now I am not saying that the risk of catching the Coronavirus isn’t real, it is a dangerous flu. What has become more dangerous is that the level of panic seems to have exceeded the danger.

We need to remember that the stock market always comes back, and in all cases moves much higher. The virus will run its course and we will all learn more about how to be better protected from getting new viruses. When the danger has passed, and it will, the lessons we learned will make us healthier. Most importantly, life will return to normal.

We should have a healthy level of concern and wash our hands more frequently. We should trust that the civil authorities know what they are doing. But we shouldn’t let panic control us, we should control us. Not changing our lives is a great place to start.

Doing the things we always do, no matter how modified, is a good place to start.

We should still say I love you to our loved ones, maybe more. We should still hug our children, maybe a little tighter.  We should still call our parents, probably more frequently. We should plant the spring flowers, perhaps a few more this year. We should still help the elderly, especially now.

The problem with the disease of panic is that it is an easy bed to jump into and a hard one to get out of. But arise we must, because staying there will only make things worse.

Instead of needing to be consoled, we should try to console. Helping others is a wonderful antidote to fear. Try it, you will feel better. That I can guarantee.

As Christians, we know to have faith and we should. We may not be sure how this all turns out, but losing our faith doesn’t make sense. How many times in the past has God has answered our prayers. And this we should remember.

In these times of stress, God’s arms of help haven’t been shortened. They are just as long as they were yesterday, probably longer.

Faith is something we can count on. It is a place that shields us from panic. A place where the Holy Spirit delivers comfort and wisdom. A quiet place of prayer. On our knees or sitting, we are in commune with God, who will answer us today as happened yesterday.

Panic is an emotional virus that is spread much like a physical virus. Fear breeds fear and left unchecked is an unreasonable pursuer of mayhem. But panic is a disease that is curable.

Deep breaths will diminish its effect. Remembering to continue our lives will tap down its desire to debilitate. Washing our hands often will give us a greater sense of control.

Prayer will provide peace and reassure us. Reading the Bible will give insight. For times like this, I highly recommend reading Philippians and 2^nd Corinthians. Both wonderfully uplifting books that provide hope in times of duress.

Things will get better in time, not because I have seen it many times, but because I live by faith. Let panic abate. The flowers of spring will sprout green soon. Hope will replace despair. The streams of light called everyday life will return.

Be at peace.

Listen to the Full Podcast – Faith and Reducing Coronavirus induced Panic

Blessings, until next time,
Bruce L. Hartman

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3 Ways Being Like Jesus Will Help Your Career

The son can do nothing on his own accord, but only what he sees the father doing. For whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise.

Luke [5:19]

This year when I was doing my speeches on college campuses, I wanted to try some different. Instead of preparing an intricately weaved message, I would focus on only three points and keep repeating them using different examples each time. My message this year was how to find a job and become a great employee. Simply, there are three ways, be positive, be trustworthy and pursue excellence. That’s it, no sophisticated weaving to make the point at the end, just keep repeating the same message.

Well, it worked! When I got the feedback and reviews back from my college visit at Theil College in Western Pennsylvania, the students overwhelmingly repeated the message in their reviews and used the explanations to support their reviews.

The message is simple, you only need to be three things to be a great employee. Yes, only three; being positive, trustworthy and committed to excellence. When I explained this to a friend, he said, But my employee appraisal given by my employer had forty-three different measurements! I told him this wasn’t that unusual; many companies make the mistake of over-complicating evaluating employees.

So, I asked him to give me his appraisal form. He did and we placed all forty-three review items into one of three categories; Being Positive, Being trustworthy and Committed to excellence. And yes, everyone could fit into one of the three categories!

I think we all make this mistake of overthinking things; I am certainly heavily prone to doing this! But just imagine telling your spouse, mom, and dad or even a friend every one of your forty-three individual rankings from your employee appraisal. Heck, for most of us ten minutes after the review we can only remember a few. So why not just work on the three that cover everything! Three is easy to remember and simpler to deal with.

So, let’s start with being positive. Well, Jesus has a point of view on this category, He said, If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light. So, just imagine using this point of view when you approach a customer. They would be happier and more open to hearing what you have to say. We shouldn’t be dour or stern, but open and receptive. If one of your forty-three ratings was on customer service, guess what; you would get a high mark.

Now imagine you are working in a team setting and have this same attitude Jesus is talking about. You would be a great listener and a patient partner. Every word you speak will be geared to lift up and help collaborate. Well, you know what your rating would be for teamwork. Sure, very high.

Let’s turn to the second category, being trustworthy. Here Jesus explains; One who is faithful in very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in very little is also dishonest in much. (Luke [16:10]) Well, this seems pretty simple. Trustworthiness is built by doing even the smallest things with integrity. Another way of looking at this is by answering the question; how do you work when no one is watching?

I once had a boss who said he could tell a lot by how someone played golf. If they played by the rules, he could trust them in the office. Likewise, when we interview for a new job, there should be no stretching of the truth, not even the smallest amount.

One of the things people miss here is that body language and tone can give away dishonest intentions. Many people don’t know that almost seventy percent of all communication is non-verbal. Yes, that’s right, seventy percent. We all give off subtle cues about our real intent, non-verbally. And most people are smart and will pick them up

But I know only one sure-fire way around letting non-verbal communication give away dishonest communication. Don’t be dishonest.

The final point; is pursue excellence in all that you do. The more you learn and are willing to do the more valuable you become. The more valuable, the more treasured. Jesus explains this in The Parable of the Talents. A story about a manager who went away for a few days and left his employees things to do. Two of the three employees actually did more than what was asked, to which the manager said; Well done, good and faithful servant, you have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.

So this is the way work goes, you are given a task and if you just complete it, you will get another task, but not much different. If you do more than is asked, you get more responsibility, become more valued and get more job freedom.

Simple? Not quite, to do this you have to learn things you didn’t already know. Here is the difference-maker. Learn them with enthusiasm. Be incredibly curious about how everything works. Even if it seems boring. And no excuses, like I never did this before, or this is hard. Always remember, in most workplaces you aren’t doing neo-natal surgery, so most any requirements or new tasks can be learned. Learning to figure stuff out is within all our capabilities and becomes a valuable trait.

This part is also about commitment to excellence. Not excellence derived from a long management book. But practical excellence. Excellence that you know in your heart. When you feel yourself giving in or giving up, be the one willing to continue. Excellence expressed in getting even the little things perfect.  And always remember as Christians we work for the Lord! So make your work acceptable to Jesus.

Whether you have a job or are looking for a job, keep it simple. And trust me, everything comes down to three things, being positive, being trustworthy and pursuing excellence. You can read all the self-help books you can find or tie yourself up in knots thinking about how to impress people. But it always comes down to these three traits. Work on these three and the rest will fall in place.

And always remember that Jesus, the Son, only did what, God, the Father was doing! So when we work, work to please the Lord.

Listen to the Full Podcast – 3 Ways Being Like Jesus Will Help Your Career

Blessings, until next time,
Bruce L. Hartman

Galatians: We Are All Equal In Christ!

There is neither Greek or Jew, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male or female, for you are all one in Jesus.

Galatians [3:28]

A friend of mine came to me overwhelmed by the complexity of the Book of Romans. It is certainly one of the most complex books in the Bible! I suggested she should read Galatians first. Here was my reasoning, it was written before Romans and is considered a primer to Romans. Certainly less burdensome in its length and the deeply elegantly prose written by Paul in Romans is replaced with a simpler to the point prose of Paul. So while Galatians isn’t as theologically rich, it is far more accessible. By comparison, Romans has sixteen chapters and Galatians has six. But both contain many of the same thoughts.

The letter was written to a church in Galatia, a region of present-day Turkey. The date of the letter is late 40’s AD, maybe 50 AD. This one of Paul’s first letters. What I personally love about this letter is a verse in chapter [3:28], where it says; There is neither Greek or Jew, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male or female, for you are all one in Jesus.

I would call this a foundational statement by Paul. A statement that we can use to measure other writings or verses written by Paul. Here it is a well-crafted sentence written for the Galatians that tells all about how Paul thinks. He believes that All people, and I cannot stress ALL enough! His message is that ALL are equal and worthy to Jesus. It doesn’t matter where you come from, your gender, what you believed before you were born again, we are ALL equal. And we ALL start as Christians first and everything else second.

Knowing this foundational message by Paul will not only open up Galatians but also help in the reading of Romans.

In this verse, is also the statement that while we should view others as equal, it also means; just because you are rich doesn’t mean you are better in God’s eyes. Whether you are Republican or Democrat isn’t important to God. But your personal character and values are what God cares about.

Another fundamental statement for Paul in Galatians is in Chapter [2:16], where it says; Yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus. As much as any other verse in Galatians this is a critical message. We can do all the good we are capable of, but without our faith in Christ, we cannot be justified with God. In other words, we can’t work our way into heaven, and that shouldn’t be our goal. Our goal is to simply believe completely, and most importantly have faith in Jesus.

Now,  let’s be careful here, this doesn’t mean that we can intentionally live in sin and believe our faith frees us. Nope, that is not what this means. Partially, because it doesn’t make sense. If you believe fully in Christ Jesus, why would you not want to always do good? Rather if we are doing only what we want, rather than following the words of Christ than it is a good indication we have a faulty sense of faith.

Simply, we want to do good, because we fully believe and have faith in Jesus.

The difference is our attitude to faith if we say we believe only for a selfish purpose of eternal life, this isn’t true faith. If we have faith because we believe in Jesus, we exhibit this faith by our unselfish being. But faith comes first and being good is a by-product.

Now we should also remember, we will all fail and have difficult moments even with a strong faith and I excel at these moments. This gets us to Paul’s point about God’s grace and forgiveness. The grace and forgiveness of God is unmerited and is freely given for just these moments. Repeating our failures and difficult moments intentionally, however, will eventually separate us from God.

Now there is a very deep difference in how the Catholic church thinks about doing good as a testament of our faith; versus Protestants. Protestants believe they are justified with God through faith alone. While Catholics believe that our faith is shown in our works. Personally, I think Paul is telling us that both are right. Faith comes first, but it manifests itself in our good works.

In Chapter 5 Paul handles this rather well, where he says, For you were called to freedom. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve each other.

So you might also ask, why doesn’t Paul mention the law or the ten commandments as our guide. Well, he says something different, he agrees with the law but says the Jesus wants us to walk with the Spirit. That by doing this we gain freedom. For the Spirit will not lead us to sin. So trying to follow the law by ourselves is not enough, and this the point Paul is making. He states that as believers in Christ we are better off to walk with and trust the Spirit. And in turn this is a more effective way of complying with the Ten Commandments

One final point is why Paul wrote this letter to the church in Galatia because other people had visited the church and tried to change the minds of the people of the church in Galatia. Things like, you have to be circumcised to be a Christian or confusing suggestions about what faith really was. This letter, like Romans, was designed to get this church back on track.

But be careful in judging the Galatians, this was a very early church and it shouldn’t surprise us they struggled. What is important in this letter is that not only does it apply to the church in Galatia, but for churches two thousand years later. Any modern church could and perhaps even should review Galatians and test their own spiritual practices, by asking themselves; Are we following these principles?

Galatians was a well-crafted primer for Christians and churches in the 1^st century, but also for us in the 21^st century.

Read Galatians with these thoughts in the back of your mind and see how they apply to your life. Then read Romans, you will be prepared and ready!

And as always, remember to bring the Holy Spirit along as well.

Listen to the Full Podcast –Galatians: We Are All Equal in Christ

Blessings, until next time,
Bruce L. Hartman

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