Tiger's Sex Rehab - Really?

Tiger Woods has been in a sex rehab facility for his addiction to sex for 45 days and is scheduled to go back for more.

In his confession and apology today Tiger talked about his reasoning for his behavior. He said that he felt entitled to it. It seems that his fame, money, and power presented him with easy opportunities to commit adultery.

What is sex rehab? I am sure that some people might have a legitimate addiction, maybe. But, not Tiger Woods. I am not buying it. His reasoning has nothing to do with an addiction. Entitlement and fame are not indicative of an addiction.

What do they do in Tiger's sex rehab? Tell him its wrong. Do they have classes on keeping your pants on? Did he learn ten steps how not to contact a high end prostitute? Did they try and find something that happened in his past that caused him to cheat on his wife and kids? Did they discuss how to avoid hotel rooms with voluptuous women?

Think about the logistics that were required for Tiger to hook up with all these women. It took some serious forethought and planning for him to get in a place where he could have sex with these women. It wasn't that spontaneous. It was calculated and planned. That is not addiction, it is stupidity.

Tiger doesn't need sex rehab, he needs sin rehab. He may be able to alter his behavior, but he cannot change his sinful heart. Strength of will is not going to overcome his sin. A 12 step program will not overcome his sinful nature. Buddhism will not solve his sin problem.

There is only one rehab that will cure Tiger Woods of his addiction to sin. The solution is repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.

Tiger's Post Modern Trouble

Why did Tiger feel compelled to make a confession and apology?

Our culture is one of post modernity. Post modern thought is hard to define, but it seems to be dominated by relativism. Everything is relative. Nothing is certain. There is no truth. There is no objective morality. What is right for you, is right for you, and need not be right for everyone else.

One of the areas of society that has been attacked by post modern thought has been the institution of marriage. All kinds of groups have brought attacks upon the traditional idea of marriage. These attacks are not just about gay marriage. Open marriage, delayed marriage, and even serial promiscuity seem to be no problem anymore. If it feels good, do it. If it is good for you, then it can't be wrong.

So, why did Tiger withdraw from golf, go to rehab, and make an apology? Seriously, did he do anything wrong? Infidelity is not illegal. Yes, he may have broke some minor law by paying for prostitutes, but many think that prostitution should be legal anyway. So he is a serial adulterer, that is not so wrong is it?

Apparently there is something very wrong with what Tiger did. He knew it. If he didn't think it was wrong in his conscience he wouldn't have tried to hide it for so long. I have heard some people say that Tiger's infidelity is not a big deal because there are many other guys on the PGA tour who do the same thing. But, they all keep it secret. They all try to hide it just like Tiger tried. Because they know intuitively that it is wrong. Their shame in hiding their behavior is evidence that somewhere inside they know what they are doing is wrong.

There are exceptions, there always is. Some people are so depraved that they openly engage in all kinds of promiscuity and infidelity with no remorse. But, the norm is that a promiscuous life is not a virtue. Adultery is not viewed as a positive character trait.

The post modern person can try as hard as they want to live a carefree life of relativity. But, for most, it is a losing battle against their God given conscience. Furthermore, it just doesn't work, and they know it.

Romans 2:14-16
For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.

Mardi Gras - Trip Report Pt 1

I have safely returned from the Who Dat? nation. Thanks to all who prayed for me during this short, yet intense trip. Over the next few blogs I plan to give a report of what went on and some of my thoughts about the trip.

Sunday and early Monday were very eventful. It started on Sunday morning as I went with a team from our church to do our monthly nursing home ministry where I preached to them. We then returned to our church and I preached the morning service there. I had to leave as church was ending in order to catch a flight at Love Field that would take me to New Orleans.

There was already another team there from Northeast Houston Baptist Church. They had been there since Saturday and had already been praying and sharing Christ. Pastor Sonny and Jaime D. and the other teammembers are solid, faithful Christ followers. I would eventually meet up with them and Pastor Nathan, Tim, Bill, Blayne and a slew of gospel sharing women from NEHBC. What a great team they are.

I got to the French Quarter at about 4:30 p.m. I spent the next 8.5 hours on the streets praying, observing, handing out gospel fliers, sharing Christ, eating, and lots of walking.

I was really looking forward to being there, but also felt a lot of nervousness and wondered what I would do and say. But, I was trusting the Lord, and that is always a good thing.

There were scores of people everywhere doing all kinds of things. As I walked around I would pray for these people and asked God to do a work in their lives.

As I did this I would attempt to hand out gospel fliers to people. Some would take them. Some would not. I had some people tell me "thanks". I had some people say things that were not gracious.

At one point I handed out a tract to two guys. They stopped and asked me,"what is this?" All of a sudden I have an opportunity to tell them what it is all about. For about 5 minutes I got to share the entire gospel with these two guys. They asked a couple of questions, seemed to be thinking about what I said, and then they left. I may never know this side of heaven what the result of that encounter might be. But, I praise the Lord for the opportunity to dispense the message of Jesus.

Mardi Gras Mission

Tomorrow evening I will embark on my second trip to New Orleans to work the streets during Mardi Gras.

Mardi Gras in N.O. is one of the largest parties in the world.(Biggest is in Rio De Janeiro). Hundreds of thousands of people will come to NO from all over the states and all over the world. The will drink gallons of alcohol, get wasted, get naked, engage in all kinds of lascivious behavior and sins. (doesn't sound like fun to me)But, these are not the scum of society, they are your neigbhors and co-workers. They are not evil, they are lost and need a Savior.

I will not be partying, I will be doing the work of an evangelist. Lord willing, I will hand out tracts and start conversations in which I can share the message of Christ with anyone I can.

Does this work? Is this effective? Is this just a waste of time? After all, they may not even be sober.

First of all, Jesus came to seek and to save the lost. Well, here they are. Jesus did not come for those who do not need a physician, but for those who are spiritually sick. Well, here they are.

Is it effective? Absolutely yes, from a certain point of view. I have already been convicted of the Lord that I need to be in much prayer about this trip. Me being drawn closer to the Lord - that is effective. I will get the opportunity to share my faith and be obedient to the Great Commission. That is effective in my own life.

But, is it effective in reaching the lost and bringing them to a saving knowledge of Jesus? The answer to that question is maybe.

I think this type of Christ sharing is like shooting a machine gun. You put out a lot of bullets and hope something gets hit. Or, it is like fishing. You make lots of casts and hope to catch something. Or, to use a biblical illustration, it is like sowing seed. Much of that seed might fall on useless ground. But maybe, just maybe, the seed of the gospel of Jesus might just fall on good soil. Soil that comes to faith in Jesus, and yields a bountiful harvest of fruitfulness for the glory of Christ.

I don't know what God might do. Imagine a scenario like this. I put a tract into the hands of a man from Timbuktu. He is drunk, has no idea what's going on. He wakes up the next morning and sobers up. He can't believe what he did the last few nights. He finds a piece of paper stuck in his pocket. He pulls it out and reads it. It is the gospel tract telling him about Jesus Christ. He realizes how deep his sin truly is. The man gets on his knees, repents and places his faith in Christ. Then he goes home and tells his family about Jesus - they come to faith. He goes on to live a life that glorifies God and leads many others to the throne of grace.

Could something like that happen? Absolutely. And since that is a possibility, that is all that matters.

Snow At My House

Heaven and Hell

The great attraction of heaven is the unbroken presence of Christ.

The great pain of hell is the unbroken absence of Christ.

(which includes the eternal torment of hellfire, and is a place where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.)

Tim Tebow Superbowl Ad

With all the hoopla leading up to the superbowl, the debate about Tim Tebow's ad caught my attention. All the pro abortion groups were all over the media complaining in some form or fashion. Even though, they had never seen the ad.

When I saw it during the superbowl I thought it really made all those complaints look foolish. I think the story of Tim and Pam Tebow is compelling and amazing.
Here is the ad, and be sure to go to the Focus on the Family website to see the whole story. It's great.

Don't Forget Being Saved: The Tragic Story of Abraham Shakespeare

Abraham Shakespeare was a humble man of with not much means. He was an assistant truck driver and still lived with his mother in a rural area near Tampa, Florida. He didn’t have much and never really did. An article in the AP writes that he could hardly read and had a criminal record.

His friends reported that they were pleased when they saw Abraham join a local church. He seemed to have a new interest in spiritual things. He was even baptized at the church.

It was shortly after this that Abraham’s life took another turn. He won the lottery. Literally, he purchased and won $30 million dollars from the Florida Lottery. He took the lump sum payment and instantly pocketed $17 million dollars. Whoa!

And that is exactly what everyone who ever knew Abraham thought. They showed up in droves at his door with hands outstretched. He was generous and did give some of his wealth away. He bought a million dollar home and other things.

It was then that Abraham got into a relationship with a swindler named Deedee. She pilfered his money, and then took his life. Abraham went missing and was recently found. He was buried 5ft below ground, in a slab of concrete – dead!

That is not even the most tragic part of this story.

Listen to this quote, “Meanwhile, friends and family puzzled Friday over Shakespeare's rapid rise and fall. Jones said his friend lived a humble life, and just before he bought the winning ticket he joined a church and was baptized. "When he won the lottery," Jones said, "he forgot about being saved."

1 Timothy 6:9
"But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction."

Matthew 13:7; 22
“A sower went out to sow, and some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them…
“As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.”

AP story here.

Here is a link to the story from the NY Daily News

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2010/01/06/2010-01-06_30m_lottery_winner_abraham_shakespeare_feared_murdered_for_his_jackpot.html

It's not a difficult story to find, all you have to do is google search abraham shakespeare.