“What Kind of ‘-Holic’?”

 

“What Kind of ‘-Holic’?”

 

(When I finished the previous article {“What ‘-Form’?”} I remembered the one below that I wrote for a church bulletin many years ago. It’s repeated here with minor changes and updates.)

 

In recent years a new suffix seems to have found its way into the English language which, when attached to familiar words, carries the idea of addiction or control. This addendum, “-holic”, wasn’t even found in the unabridged dictionary I consulted years ago but is now included in Dictionary.com. It can carry great impact on our lives and those of others.

Sometimes the idea can portray the humorous side of life--chocoholic and shopaholic come to mind. In other cases it may be a red flag for potential problems which reflect misdirected priorities as in sportsaholic or movieholic. A third type can be so threatening that support groups have sprung up to help those so affected (alcoholic, workaholic, foodaholic, etc.). The common thread is excessive domination by something that has lost its proper perspective in one’s life.

I’d like to suggest a few positive “-holic” practices to which we’d do well to give our attention. We ought to be, first, prayeraholics. We’re told to “…pray continually….” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) so our tendency ought to be to go to the Lord no matter what the needs or circumstances might be. We should also be Spiritholics. In Ephesians 5:18 we’re commanded to “…be filled with the Spirit.”—in other words, be controlled by Him. Then, too, we’re to be growaholics. The Lord’s friend and apostle challenges us to “…grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 3:18), a principle reiterated in Hebrews 6:1 (“…”Let us…go on to maturity….”). Finally, let’s be servaholics as we “…serve one another in love.” (Galatians 5:13). One caution, however: we must be careful not to neglect our families and other responsibilities as we put these practices to work (see 1 Timothy 5:8).

Chances are there are certain areas of our lives which control us more than others. If they’re questionable we need to put them off and be the kind of “-holics” that can be used of God to make Him look good.

 

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan

"What '-Form'?"

 

“What ‘-Form’?”

 

In a high school English class the teacher led us in a study of suffixes, which are endings of compound words to give clarification or added meaning. Examples were cited (too many to list here) but one which has stood out to me in recent years is “-form”, which has the basic sense of acting in a particular way. The Scrabble Word Finder lists 98 words with this ending which are acceptable in the game—familiar ones such as deform, inform, perform and uniform plus many others I’d never seen. But for the purposes of this article let me zero in on three.

Reform is defined as “improvement by correction of error, giving up irresponsible or immoral practices”. The Hebrew word means “do better” and is translated in many ways but only by “reform” four times in Jeremiah, all pointing towards human effort. Because “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure.” (Jeremiah 17:9) is it any wonder that such an approach is rarely effective over the long haul? Conform means “to comply with rules or customs”. Since these practices vary greatly there’s no real standard by which to measure it. Transform comes from a Greek word from which we get metamorphosis, a biological process by which an animal changes its form (as a caterpillar to a butterfly or a tadpole to a frog). So reform and conform involve outward modifications while transform deals with inward activity.

The latter two words are combined in Paul’s message to the church at Rome: “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” (Romans 12:2, emphasis added). He commands us not to let our surroundings shape us so we become like the society God’s called us to influence (Phillips renders it, “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold….”). Rather we’re to allow God to change us from the inside out so we think and act like Jesus. Until we surrender our minds to Him our actions won’t be impacted. Solomon wrote, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it effects everything you do.” (Proverbs 4:23, NLT), a theme echoed by Jesus Himself: “…Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.” (Matthew 12:34).

So what is and will be my “-form”? Reform again and again? Conform to culture’s pressures? Or be transformed by God’s working where only He can: in my heart?

 

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan

"Fan or Follower?"

 

“Fan or Follower?”

 

In a Moody Radio message on “Bold Steps” Pastor Mark Jobe asked a probing question: Am I a fan or follower of Jesus?” Around the same time in an Our Daily Bread devotional written for Pentecost Sunday (May 28, 2023) Winn Collier emphasized the power and work of the Holy Spirit in answering Jobe’s challenge. And Pastor Jay Dennis put it another way: “The Holy Spirit must be more than just a resident; He must be president in control of your life!” These penetrating thoughts gripped me and reminded me that there’s a big difference between the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (His presence in me) and His filling (His control over every area of my life). So how does this play out in my daily journey?

According to Scripture 46 things happen when one accepts Christ as his/her Savior (I wish I hadn’t lost the list I had years ago), one of which is “…that my body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in (me)….” (1 Corinthians 6:19). That’s the fan part. But what makes me a follower? When I obey the command to “…be filled with the Spirit.” (Ephesians 5:18). In other words, “Be completely controlled by the Holy Spirit.” The phrase “filled with the Holy Spirit” appears nine times in Acts and is always accompanied by courageously proclaiming God’s truth (e.g. “After they prayed…they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.”—Acts 4:31, emphasis added).

In the early days of the church there was a price to be paid by those who identified with Jesus. The same is true of many of our brothers and sisters around the world today. But Jesus had predicted this would happen (“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.”—John 15:18). And some 60 years later His friend wrote, “Do not be surprised, my (brothers and sisters), if the world hates you.” (1 John 3:13). So living in a hostile system leaves no room for mere “fans”—only true and faithful followers will be able to stand under such circumstances (see Ephesians 6:13).

So…am I a fan or follower of Christ?

 

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan

 

"Small Things"

 

“Small Things”

 

Our Men’s Bible Study Fellowship’s journey through the Minor Prophets recently took us to Zechariah. He ministered around 520 BC and told of the rebuilding of the Jewish temple and renewal of worship practices under the leadership of Zerubbabel and Joshua respectively. Today (this is being written in early May) we had a discussion of a phrase in Zechariah 4:10: “Who despises the day of small things?” (Emphasis added.) The conclusion we reached is that there are small things but no insignificant ones in God’s sight. Here are a few biblical examples:

*Shamgar (an otherwise obscure judge of Israel) was empowered by God to use an ox goad (a pointed stick) to deliver His people from Philistine oppression (Judges 3:31).

*About 250 years later God used a stone in David’s sling to kill Goliath and give Israel victory over (who else?) the Philistines (1 Samuel 17:48-50).

*Jesus compared God’s kingdom’s growth to a mustard seed (Matthew 13:32—see the early article “Small Beginnings” for a description of its size).

*Our Lord took a boy’s small lunch and multiplied it to feed a large crowd (John 6:5-13).

*The human tongue is a small part of the body (about 70 grams in weight) but can wreak havoc (James 3:1-12—see “Muscle Talk” for more on its potential impact).

In the words of songwriter Kittie Suffield, “Little is much when God is in it!” So, in answer to God’s question posed to Zechariah (“Who despises the day of small things?”), let it never be said, “We do!”

(I guess this article lives up to its title.)

 

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan