Fabrications, Stories, and Self-Appointed Experts. It's called life.

I am always amazed at the fabrications and stories about me that I hear others have spread. I’m sure all of you have heard things about your life you had no idea existed until your personal self-appointed experts revealed it to the world. For example, I have found out through these experts that I

• was forced to marry because of Laci being pregnant
• was moving to a foreign country and leaving the church
• was a pastor from D.C. and commuted the 90 minutes every week
• had cancer and was dying
• demand money from grieving families to be paid to the church if I do their loved one's funeral

… and a 100 other stories that were as or more preposterous as the ones I mentioned above. Of course, none of them are true and would have been purely laughable if gullible people wouldn’t have believed them. However, before I feed self-pity and think I’m the only one to experience such a strange phenomenon, let’s see if it happened to Jesus.

Jesus was accused of being:

• A deceiver (John 7:12).
• An illegitimate child (John 8:41).
• Demon possessed (Matt. 9:34; John 7:20).
• Beelzebub, using the power of Satan to cast out demons (Matt. 10:25).
• Mentally ill (John 10:20).
• A blasphemer – witnesses were produced to reinforce this charge (Matt. 9:3; 26:65; Mark 2:7)
• A destroyer of the Temple in Jerusalem (Mark 14:58).
• An enemy to the Law of Moses.

Matthew 10:25 (KJV)

²⁵ It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household?

Jesus made it clear that as they falsely accused him and fabricated stories that were grossly untrue, so will they do the same to us as his followers.

Paul was not immune to these false theories concerning his life and purposes. He was accused of:

• Extorting God’s people (2 Cor. 2:17; 11:7-21).
• Being a false apostle (Gal. 1:11-2:10; 2 Cor. 11:16-12:12).
• Being a flatterer (1 Thess. 2:5).
• Blasphemy (Acts 24:6).
• Being a man pleaser and a coward (Gal. 1:10; 1 Thess. 2:4).
• Being greedy (1 Thess. 2:5,9).
• Being a deceiver and a crafty manipulator (2 Cor. 6:8; 12:16).
• Seeking glory from men (1 Thess. 2:6).
• Being a “cult” leader (Acts 24:5).
• Being a criminal (Acts 16:20-21; 24:5; 2 Tim. 2:9).

These men dealt with these self-appointed judges almost on a daily basis. They realized that when you are in a position of authority and leadership, it will attract the ire of those in opposition. One thing the enemy knows – the power of words. Words can change a person’s reputation overnight and castrate the influence of that person from anymore opportunity to persuade others. If Satan didn’t understand this, he wouldn’t waste the time in influencing opposition to destroy reputations with the sabers of words.

What do we do to rise above the attacks? Live your life above reproach and with integrity so that when someone accuses you - no one will believe it.

Remember, you don’t have to answer every critic. A lion doesn’t turn around every time a dog barks. If you do attempt to answer every critic, your life will bog down in the unnecessary leaving your purpose unattended. Remain focused on why you are here and pray for those who have chosen dead-end lives with no production.

Learn to laugh, smile, and keep your faith alive in Christ. In the end, He is the only one that will matter. 

- Dr. Reuben Egolf 

Trust Emerging from the Ashes of Being Broken - There is Hope

How do you rebuild trust after it has been broken? 

An age old question that has left many destroyed in its wake. The usual end result is frustration and coming to the conclusion it is an impossible feat to reconstruct relationships, after they have been decimated by the hurricane of broken trust. 

However, there is hope and it is not an impossibility. Here are a few pointers to help the reconciliation process and rebuild the relationship to be even stronger than before.

• In order to restore trust you have to stop arguing about the details of the past and start talking about the design/blueprint for the future.

Arguing about what happened yesterday and focusing on who is at fault becomes an endless and futile venture. It yields nothing positive for the future. Concentrating on the past removes all ability to build a future.

• You will never rebuild trust on the ashes of the past.
• You have to replace your view of the past with a vision for the future and realize it’s going to take time to rebuild that trust!

Speak more about where you are going instead of where you have been. In other words, fix NOW so you have a FUTURE.

• Don’t make a monument to your failures and give your past permission to ruin your future.

Stop making it as reference points in the life whether in your own life or the other person’s. Throw away the black book! A fatal mistake is revisiting the monuments of the past as if they occurred yesterday when in reality it could have been 20 years ago. Let it go and never go back!

• Don’t allow the Devil to trap you in a world of misery that you cannot change.

Satan’s favorite place to visit is a person’s past. If he can lead you there and get you to build a house and dwell there – it will be a world of total misery. Nothing changes in that world. The best policy is to leave it and close the door and throw away the key!

• Go through the Cross and forget the past’s existence, because the future is waiting.

One of the most powerful phrases a person can utter is "I'm sorry." Contained in those heartfelt words is someone expressing personal responsibility, remorse, and a desire to correct. If backed up with corresponding actions, you will witness and experience the transition from a mess produced by self, to becoming a message produced by grace. 

Remember, Jesus gave us all a second chance and probably a lot more if we were honest. Why not invest the effort today to restore that broken relationship and rebuild something that will testify of God's greatness. I promise it will be worth it! 

 Nehemiah 9:17
¹⁷  And refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou didst among them; but hardened their necks, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage: but thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and forsookest them not.

Let’s follow his example.

- Dr. Reuben Egolf