Wresting With a Dilemma

How may we explain the undeniable imbalance between evangelistic efforts by the average American church and the equally unavoidable lack of involvement in efforts to alleviate poverty, abolish crime, restore ex-offenders, minister to children of offenders, etc.? I’ve given a lot of thought to this and wonder if we might resolve the dilemma by acknowledging the existence of an artificial distinction in practice between ”redemptive grace” and “transformative grace.” What in the world am I talking about? Allow me to briefly explain. I have seldom met anyone who denies the fact that no one is outside the reach of grace and that Christ will save anyone, regardless of their sinful past. Certainly, we include ourselves in that redemptive reality. We expound Romans 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” and in the next breath we hasten to Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ He Jesus our Lord.” We read those statements with an “of course” on the tips of our tongues. This is what I’m terming redemptive grace: Romans 5:8, 9, “But God demonstrates his love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.” As before mentioned, rarely have I encountered anyone in the Christian community who would deny this saving reality. However, it seems that while we joyously proclaim the possibility of salvation regardless of past sin, we hesitate and falter at the point of helping those who receive new life to implement it, especially those who need a lot of help at the point of practicing it. We mean well and often are convinced that we’ve completed our task by proclaiming the good news of Christ. But when measured against the standards declared in Scripture in places like Isaiah 58; Amos 5:14-15; Micah 6:8; Matthew 25:31-46; and James 1:22-27; the actual application of our belief system is called into question. Stated simply: we readily believe in redemptive grace (God will save anyone), but do we correspondingly believe in and practice transformative grace (God is willing and able to transform everyone)? Clearly, if we truly believe that God is not only willing to save anyone but also able to transform everyone, we will passionately engage hunger, poverty, homelessness, crime, substance abuse, unemployment, the restoration and reintegration of ex-offenders, and anything else required to ensure that every believer experiences what Jesus declares in John 10:10, a life that is full and meaningful in every possible way.

Awakening to the Power of Mentoring

Have you ever been exposed to something your entire life without really knowing anything about the subject or item or person? As far back as I can remember, I've been aware that something called Big Brothers exists. Perhaps it was due to a program at school or strategically placed billboards, but the vague recognition has been "there" (wherever "there" is). But all that changed yesterday during a visit with Olivia Eudaly in the offices of Big Brothers Big Sisters North Texas. First of all, Olivia Eudaly is an extraordinary person. As Executive Vice President-Government Relations for Big Brothers big Sisters Lone Star and State Executive Director of Amachi Texas, Olivia Eudaly is at the helm of groundbreaking initiatives in mentoring at-risk children. Working closely with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, the Texas Education Agency, One Star Foundation, the Office of the Governor, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, and ten Big Brothers Big Sisters agencies across the state of Texas, Olivia coordinates Amachi's efforts to place one-to-one mentors in the lives of children of prisoners. A former candidate for U.S. Congress, Olivia is also active in local, regional and national politics. In 2000 she was elected delegate to the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia where she served as the National Credentials Committeewoman from Texas. She also teaches a popular Ladies' Bible Study class at Travis Avenue Baptist Church in Fort Worth and currently mentors a young girl in the Fort Worth area whose father is serving 8 years behind bars.

But it was standing in a room just outside her offices that something "clicked" for me. Out of curiosity in the name, I entered the T. Boone Pickens Mentoring Hall of Fame. What soon captured my attention was a pictorial timeline that depicted the history of Big Brothers and, essentially, a history of efforts in mentoring at-risk children. For years I have told my students that everyone should have a mentor and be a mentor, but yesterday was a sort of epiphany for me in recognizing the intrinsic and eternal value of intentionally mentoring at-risk individuals, whether they be children, youth, or adults. What could be more Christ-like than one-on-one mentoring of someone who may be lost in many ways without such a valuable relationship? I plan to make this a priority and encourage others to look for individuals in whom you may invest yourselves. Only eternity will reveal the significance of taking a little time to be a mentor to someone who desperately needs to know they matter.