Mike Vick found Jesus?

Unless you have been hiding under a “proverbial rock”, were recently thawed from your 100 year slumber in a carbon-freezing chamber, or you are new to this planet, then you’ve probably heard about Mike Vick. To be sure, Vick is not going to run for either town dog-catcher or chairman of the local chapter of the ASPCA. The events that have unfolded in recent days concerning his dog-fighting ring have been both confusing and disappointing.

Freakishly talented, Vick has shown flashes of both brilliance and frustration on the football field. His athleticism has allowed him to make “oh, my goodness, did you just see that?” moves to illude would-be tacklers, yet he could never evade the constant critiscism of failing to be the quintessential pocket quarterback. Regardless of people’s take on his maturity as an NFL qb, before his involvement with dogfighting, Vick was one of the main reasons for putting “meat in the seat” each Sunday afternoon in pro football stadiums across the nation.

While I was saddened by his recent legal troubles–which seem to be the culmination of poor choices that have surfaced in the last couple of seasons; i.e. one-finger salute to fans while leaving the playing field, etc.–I was intrguied by one phrase he uttered in his four-minute, twenty-five second public apology Monday. Vick’s intersting words were, “I’m upset with myself and through this situation I’ve found Jesus and asked him for forgiveness and turned my life over to God, and I think that’s the right thing to do as of right now.”

Now, I realize that Jesus is THE Judge of mankind and, according to Scripture, is the only One able to judge the hearts of men, which involves the sincerity of their salvation. In fact, in one of the most misquoted passages in all of the Bible, Matthew 7:1, “Judge not, lest you be judged,” Christ is referring to someone’s salvation–He is not saying that we cannot identify sin, merely that we cannot make the call on a person’s eternity.

Having typed all that, two points to ponder from Vick’s mea culpa: 1) He found Jesus is biblically incorrect–Jesus was never lost; never even misplaced or misdirected. I know, I know, that sounds pedantic and pompous (look ‘em up, they are real words), but Scripture says that no one seeks after God, because of the stain of sin in our lives (Romans 3:10). Scripture also states, in Luke 19:10, that Jesus came to “seek and to save that which was lost.” We don’t find Him, He finds us.

Maybe that’s being a bit nit-picky, but it leads me to the second interesting piece of verbage (that’s a word, too): 2) “I think [giving my life over to God] is the right thing to do as of right now.” Right thing as of right now? What?! Again, I want to avoid the kind of theological snobbery that can accompany many detailed examinations of the faith-based statements of others, but what in the world does Vick mean here? The reason I ask is that, as a pastor, I run into people all the time who run to God when it’s convenient–in other words, when life pulls the rug out from under them and they have nowhere else to turn. Unfortunately, in many of these cases, the sincerity wanes when circumstances loosen their apparent strangle-hold from around the person’s life. Perhaps it’s the cynic in me, but I pray that Vick is real in his remorse and his new-found faith. I hope it’s not a convenient confession for a confusing and crippling circumstance. I hope what seems the right thing to do “right now” will still seem right when he’s no longer behind bars and the money, fame, and positive recognition potentially begin anew.

Only time will tell. Jesus, THE Judge of mankind, said that the world will know Christians by their “fruit”–the difference made in their lives after asking Christ to be their Savior. Vick’s life will either produce Christian fruit or it won’t. That’s not to say that somehow he has to return from his prison sentence and become a priest or pastor–or even an altar boy, for that matter. But it is to say that, at some point, the Christian life that he claims to have “found” will either come out in the kind of person he will become or it will fade into the abyss of forgotten potential (as, at least, the next season of Vick’s career as an NFL quarterback). I pray he is sincere; I will pray for him as he faces an uncertain future. I will pray that he returns, not only to play in the National Football League–he has too much talent and star appeal to wish him away for good–but to publicly make good on his claim to have “found” Someone who had been looking for Vick for some time.

Cool Music, Awesome Story

If you have a hankerin’ (not “hankering”) for some really cool music, then I’ve got a name you need to know . . . Mike Farris. Mike is a musician who plays what has been called “gospel funky soul.” His music has a decidedly New Orleans jazz flare. The horns resonate, the guitars buzz, and the vocals wail over every track of his latest album, “Salvation In Lights.” The cd takes me back to days growing up in the “Big Easy” –that’s New Orleans, for those of you Yanks unfamiliar with the term. These songs could be heard on a lazy afternoon at the annual Jazz Fest or in a local hell-fire and brimstone tent meeting where humidity-saturated calls for sinners to come to Christ permeated the heavy, South Louisiana air.

The coolest thing about Mike and his music goes beyond his killer vocals and his amazing band/singers; it has to do with his testimony. God has made a change in Mike and is continuing to do so–which, as I understand Scripture, is what God desires to do in all of our lives. Mike had success in the secular industry, touring with the likes of Cheryl Crow, Dave Matthews Band, Neil Young, etc., but changed his venue when the Lord delivered him from addiction and vice. Now Mike’s music is a resounding, fun-filled, energetic celebration of hope and redemption. You can check out his testimony and a lot more at www.mikefarrismusic.net.  Also, if you like what you hear and read there, Mike will be performing here in Lexington, at the Kentucky Theater, Woodsongs Old Time Radio Hour, Monday, September 10. You can reserve tickets at www.kentuckytheater.com ($10/ticket). Check out Mike’s music; enjoy his immense talent; praise God for his obvious change.

Death: Undesirable but Unavoidable

What a morbid title for a blog! But face the facts, it’s true. I mean, who wants to die? No one I’ve ever met desires death. Now, I realize there may be some who are terminally ill or in tremendous physical pain and they have thought long and hard about leaving this world.  Granted, this may be true of some, but they make up the minority of the global population. We are fixed on living, not dying. As humans, we think of any way possible to extend life, not ways to cut it short. Death is, to say the least, undesirable.

But death is also unavoidable–we’ll all die at some point in time. From the moment we’re born, our bodies are growing towards death. Even our peak levels of youthful fitness are fleeting; ask the retired professional athlete who’s added an extra fifty pounds because his body can no longer hold up under the strain of high-level physical activity. I’m not being defeatest or pessimistic; it’s simply a proven medical fact that everybody dies. Rich, poor, tall, short, young, old–people of all ways and walks of life die everyday.

Why the downer? What’s up with such a negative bog? I’ve simply stood by more caskets than I’ve wanted to lately. I preached the funeral of a good friend a month ago; Aaron’s (one of the youth at church) dad passed away two weeks ago; one of my daughter’s softball teammates’ father died Sunday and on the way into funeral home for his visitation yesterday, I received a call that my cousin died in a motorcycle accident. Along with that, I got an email from a good friend from high school who is concerned about death as he serves in the military. Needless to say, death has been on my mind.

 I’ve come to two concrete conclusions: one, death is undesirable and unavoidable; two, there is only one answer to death. Hebrews 9:27 states, “It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.” The judgment is that of all mankind by Jesus Christ. He will judge each individual who has ever lived according to all that we have ever said or done. He will judge whether or not we have accepted Him as Savior of our lives. Those who have trusted in Him by faith will spend eternity with Him in heaven, while those who have rejected Him will spend eternity in hell. I don’t write this with any joy or glee–it’s a stark reality but a reality nonetheless. But Scripture describes how the Christian can approach death, as undesirable and unavoidable as it may be, “Death is swallowed up in victory. O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

You may say something like, “I don’t believe in Jesus, so death is no big deal to me.” or “When I die, that’s it.” These are not unusual responses, but that doesn’t make them right. Let me give you an old wager (Pascal’s to be exact) and then be done: If you’re right and Jesus isn’t the answer to death, then by rejecting Him, you’ve lost nothing. But if I’m right, and Jesus is the answer to death and you reject Him, you’ve lost everything. Think about it a little and remember to pray for people all over this country today who’ve been effected by the undesirable, unavoidable pain of death.