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Lesson Six: Dealing with Subtle Sin in Our Lives

The Fifth CWG Commandment

You shall remain humble in the knowledge that you are redeemed by God's grace and mercy, and what you write glorifies the Father, not yourself. (I Corinthians 14:37)

 

Preparation and Prayer

Bring to the first meeting:

» A Bible and your 3-ring binder

» Articles you are currently writing (enough copies for all)

» Any pieces published since the last meeting

As you open your meeting:

» Praise God for the successes you've experienced.

» Pray for your audience, editors of your local paper, and works still pending publication.

» Ask the Lord to remind you of all His mercies and goodness to us.

 

Establishing the Vision: Attitude Check Scripture: Ephesians 2:8-9

My character is as important to God as my call. Equally important as my obedience is my attitude. I need to carry out God's will as the very picture of God...His nature, His thoughts, His attitudes in me.

Don sat down with his daily paper and notepad. He was determined to respond to letters that had been printed, criticizing his pastor for speaking out at school board meetings about the new proposed curriculum. But guilt plagued him. He knew he didn't always act like Christ and he feared his recent divorce would diminish his credibility as a Christian. Who was he to tell others what to do anyway?...

As Sharon read the editorial about the superiority of daycare as a way of life for young children, she felt anger well up inside. How dare the writer imply that all the sacrifices she made to stay home with her children were only making them fall behind their peers! She hurried to her computer to tap out a blistering reply to the idiot who printed such garbage!...

Both Don and Sharon are victims of the trap Satan sets for Christian writers. They have undertaken a project - writing for their local print media - without spiritual preparation. They have begun to perform surgery on the splinters in the eyes of their community without first removing the beams from their own!

Eliminating subtle sin in our lives

Righteousness-the state of having no unconfessed sin in our lives-is the key to unlocking the Holy Spirit's power in our lives. It is vital that we ask God to identify any unconfessed sin, blatant or subtle, that hinders us from being effective witnesses to the truth. After He exposes unconfessed sin, confess, repent, and resolve those issues in Jesus' name. The good news is that He is waiting to release us from the guilt and control of that sin. His Spirit then fills us with power to be effective communicators of His vision and loving compassion.

Perfecting our attitude

Awareness of our own sin and God's loving kindness prevents us from developing a strident, judgmental attitude in our writing. Christians who take to task the morality of another must do so from a position of true humility, with an honest admission of personal vulnerability to sin.

When God revealed Himself to Moses in Exodus 33:19, He said, "I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion." God's character is bound up in His mercy. While we must take a stand on moral and ethical issues and reveal the perfection and value of God's law, any expression of God's nature must always be a proclamation of His mercy and compassion.

Come on in...

We need to present our message in a hospitable way that says, "Come join us. " Picture your audience as piloting an airplane. Someday the self-sufficiency that has fueled their plane is going to run out. We need to present God's kingdom as an open runway with the lights on-the only safe place to land. This is easier to do if we don't try to accomplish too much in just one letter. Most readers will not change their course 180 degrees and admit they've been wrong all their lives after reading just one letter or article. Success might simply be a reader saying, "I guess there's more to this issue than I thought."

Just as we are tempted to form negative judgments those with whom we disagree, the readers we shall will be inclined to form very negative moral judgments Christian writers. When we are strident or dogmatic we "turn off " the uncommitted.

Philip Johnson, law professor for the University of California, Berkeley, points out that people often negatively stereotype Christians. In order to be credible and effective, we need to defuse those stereotypes. He encourages us to communicate in a way that is entirely different from what they expect. We should make it as hard as possible for to fit us into the box they've made for us. In order to do that, we must write with the very heart of God, first submitting our hurts, our pre-conceptions, our self-righteousness, our attitudes and our words to Him who has promised to "give grace to the humble."

Questions for Discussion:

» What subtle sin do you think was operating in Don's life? In Sharon's life? How might God deal with it?

» Identify the subtle sin(s) in your life right now. (Optional) Ask your group to pray for you as you ask God to deal with these areas in your life.

 

Perfecting Our Skills

Critique:

RACE to excellence! Remember, no one likes to have his writing criticized and torn apart. Be polite and respect the intent of the writer as you gently bring out the excellence hiding within. If you are the subject of critique this week, be brave and courageous! The dross is being skimmed away and what is left will be pure gold! (We hope!)

How to Write An Effective Concluding Paragraph

You will recall that the final step in writing effective discipling letters is to close them in love. The impression you leave with the reader may well depend on your conclusion. Your final paragraph(s) may fulfill several functions, including summarizing ideas, pulling thoughts together, motivating your reader to action, or restating the theme. Here are some ideas for ways to conclude your piece not only in a loving way, but in a way the reader will remember:

1. Transition words: Use words like "therefore," "consequently," "thus," "then," "as a result," "last," or "finally" to provide a subtle signal; do not overuse them.

2. Stress the significance of your thesis:
Is the reader saying "so-what?" by now? Remind him why your position is crucial.

3. Show the consequences
of failing to heed the point of your article. If your thesis was the importance of teaching honesty to students, predict the consequences of neglecting this education.

4. Call your readers to action:
give them a positive change of direction, a number to call, an organization needing volunteers, a way they can act differently

5. Use a clincher --
a device that demands the reader pay attention. These can be a personal testimony (brief!), a humorous anecdote or phrase that will make them smile and remember your point; a rhetorical question that leaves the reader something to ponder; a dramatic device, such as Linda Ellerbee's signature closing: "And so it goes"; or a relevant quotation.

Remember to be brief and concise- don't wear out your reader. Do not use the conclusion to introduce a new idea; you will only leave your reader confused.

 

Subtle Sins

Addiction Anger Animosity Anxiety Bitterness Boastfulness Closed-Mindedness Condemnation Condensation Covetousness Critical Nature Depression Discord Discouragement Dissention Dogmatism Domination Egoism

Envy Factions Fear Gluttony Gossip Guilt Hatred Haughtiness Hostility Idolatry Immoral Fantasies Impatience Impurity Indifference Inflexibility Insincerity Intemperance Jealousy Judgement Lack of Affection Lack of Faith

Lack of Zeal Laziness Materialism Negativism Prayerlessness Prejudice Pride Purposelessness Rebellion Resentment Rudeness Self-Righteousness Selfish Ambition Selfishness Skepticism Unbelief Unforgiveness Ungratefulness Vanity

Application

1. Polish the letter to the editor you critiqued during this meeting. Have you included a powerful concluding paragraph? Mail it!

2. Write an article or letter on a new topic which God has brought to mind. Pay special attention to the beginning and ending paragraphs. Make each word count!

3. Study the list of subtle sins above. Ask the Lord to reveal the sin He would like to help you conquer. Confess, repent, and go forward in the joy of his merciful love.

 

Technical Tips

Using Active Verbs

Remember the Chinese proverb "Let the verb sing the song." Using vivid, descriptive verbs (active verbs) helps to eliminate unnecessary words and keeps your sentences from being dull and lifeless.

Active verbs are those that perform an action: eat, get, teach, spend, forgot, value.

Passive verbs include is, are, was, were, has, have and phrases which are formed in combination with these words, such as have eaten, were going, are teaching, could be spending, was forgetting, have values.

» PASSIVE: There are many people who don't value freedom in our country these days.

» ACTIVE: Few people today value freedom.

» PASSIVE: There was a lot of snow on the ground.

» ACTIVE: Snow covered the ground.

» PASSIVE: The lack of love in families will be the cause of their failure.

» ACTIVE: Lack of love causes families to fail. or Families without love.

Like any rule, there are times when the passive voice will be more convenient or even necessary to convey your meaning. In general, however, avoid such phrases as "were (verb)-ing," "could be (verb)-ed," "will be (verb)," or "is (verb)-ing." Re-writing the sentence to use the active form of the verb will almost always invigorate your writing.

 

Scripture References

» Ex. 20:20
» Prov. 3:34
» Prov. 15:1
» Matt. 23:12
» Rom. 12:3, 16
» I Cor. 2:1-5
» Eph. 2:8
» 2 Tim. 2:20-21
» Titus 1:7-9
» Titus 2:7-8, 11-14
» James 1:19-20
» I Peter 3:15
» I Peter 5:5b
» I John 1:9-10

 

Facts to Ponder

“If our ambition is political...social...moral...or even 'spiritual' (to build bigger and more attractive churches and programs), we will surely fail. Instead, our ambition to become roaring lambs is to more completely serve and obey out Lord who has asked us to be salt and light. If we are not in a right relationship to Him, our own ambitions will get in the way.”

-Bob Briner

 

This is the sixth of twelve lessons in the “Church Writing Group” curriculum. Reproduction of this lesson is permissible.

For more information contact The Amy Foundation, P.O. Box 16091, Lansing, MI 48901, (517) 323-6233

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