Snake Salvation - Rev Jamie Coots - Faith & Practices

The passing of Rev Jamie Coots, Pastor of the Full Gospel Tabernacle Church in Jesus Name in Middlesboro-Bell County, Kentucky created a national interest in the practice of snake handling. The issue of snake handling and their use in a public worship service is not a new discovery for the people who live in Southeastern Kentucky or East Tennessee. His passing due to a snake bite was not the first for mountain folks. While the death of those who practice snake handling is rare, his death nevertheless created many questions for pastors of every denomination and every church. News of the event created debate on every social media venue, conversation among family members and discussion within communities of faith and those who profess no faith in Jesus Christ at all. The conversations involved asking questions as to where this belief and practice originated to individuals who expressed sadness and prayers for the family to personal opinions of their thoughts and beliefs that were also critical and sadly remarks that were hurtful and demeaning toward the practice. Rev Coots became well known as a snake handling preacher because of the National Geographic Series that aired on television, 'Snake Salvation'. It should be noted that the name 'Snake Salvation' appears to imply that salvation is associated with snake handling. This is not the situation. Snake handling is a practice that comes from Mark 16: It is possible that when you look up this chapter in the Bible it might not even be in your copy of the scriptures of the Holy Bible. This information alone is enough to cause questions but the practice of snake handling is a demonstration of faith that God is in control. Jamie Coots believed this and his personal faith also believed that God was in control in life and in death. A fact that is true, no question at all for most Christians. It is the refusal of medical treatment that creates another question and discussion for people as they attempt to understand the practice and belief. Churches have many practices and beliefs. Communion holds an important and significant value in practice to many. If we were to begin a discussion regarding communion you might be surprised as to the different views, what it means and what occurs when you practice communion. Some churches practice communion every Sunday, others monthly, quarterly and some not at all. Foot Washing is another practice of belief for many churches. Certainly it is in the Bible and a practice that Jesus himself demonstrated in John chapter 13. Many Christians no doubt have never even seen a foot washing worship service. Baptism is another church practice that has created much debate among people. Infant baptism, immersion, sprinkling, all different practices but another example of different beliefs held by Christians and practiced as an example of their faith. Each of these practices are grounded in belief and the importance varies. Snake handling is a practice that most individuals cannot even imagine. I shared that this moment in time created by this event is one that offers a unique opportunity for discussion as people ask the question what does it mean to be a Christian. When asked to answer that question myself I shared that the hallmark of a follower of Jesus Christ is quite clear in the Bible. Scriptures reads in 1 Corinthians chapter 13 that the three greatest gifts are faith, hope and love. The greatest gift is love and the practice of every believer should be a demonstration of love. Some of the comments made by individuals and even leaders seem to be void of the practice of love in their statements made regarding Rev. Coots passing. Not sure how that could be seen as appropriate in this or any other situation but love seemed to be missing from their responses. Agree or disagree Christians should be clearly identified by their actions. Jamie Coots as a believer in Jesus Christ was clearly identified as a follower with or without mass public understanding. Snake handling was one of his ways to demonstrate what he believed about Jesus and mountain people respected his right to do so and respected his position. Mountain folks regarding this practice are like many reading this column. They might not agree, or they might think his death could have been easily avoided had he agreed to medical treatment too, but that decision was made by Jamie alone and it was a personal decision that his family respected too. In American we have a tradition of allowing people to make personal decision, we have a tradition of religious freedom that includes all faiths. There could be a discussion about this fact because we generally practice this as long as those 'other faiths' are similar to ours. Sadly we often discredit faiths we don't know much about. As a minister of over 30 years, I cannot find the reasoning to expect you to appreciate my faith and practice if I am not willing to respect yours. Again, there are plenty of examples where Jesus himself afforded people respect to believe or not believe. This practice should never be dismissed by Christians if we expect to impact the world with the message of God's love and His plan for our individual lives. There is one fact that must be shared regarding Rev Jamie Coots, his life and his death. Acts 4:12 teaches that there is only one name given among men whereby we must be saved, the name of Jesus. In February of 2000, I served as the Chaplain of the Kentucky House of Representatives. At the end of my prayer I ended by saying "in the name of Jesus I pray". A member of the House objected to me using the name of Jesus then, but as a Christian minister there is no other name to which I could pray because of my practice and belief. Rev Jamie Coots practiced his belief and respect for all faiths and practices should be a hallmark of not just a region or a state, but we as a people everywhere. Until then

Valentine's Day - Union College "Love is in the Air" Concert

Valentine’s Day! The day we say ‘I love you’, or the day we make up for not saying ‘I love you’ enough, right? The tradition of the yearly event has always included flowers and chocolate. This year I have noticed in all the advisements of the season the newest addition to the tradition appears to be chocolate covered strawberries! Yes, for an extra $9.99 you can have a second dozen, if I am remembering the advertisement correctly. While this sounds great it also sounds expensive. I am adding up in my head the cost of one dozen of roses and two dozen chocolate covered strawberries. I have the perfect option that will be just as classy as red roses and chocolate covered strawberries and I can guarantee the expense will fit your budget perfectly. To make your Valentine’s Day Special I am making the recommendation that on Friday, February 14th, 8pm, you and your sweetheart should make plans to be at the Conway Boatman Chapel on the Campus of Union College in Barbourville, Ky. The Union College Music Program will present “A Valentine Concert” and the concert is free to the public, no admission charge and this includes no hidden fees like a free ticket handling charge. Free means free in Barbourville and this concert features the Union Singers, Union Harmony and the Regional Chorus. The Regional Chorus includes church choir members, and individuals who have never let go of their love for music. Members are from Harlan, London, Williamsburg, and Barbourville. They sing because they love music and the evenings musical selections will include songs like: Isn’t it Romantic; I loved you; Rainy Days and Monday’s; I’m just a girl who “Cain’t” say No’; and many others musical selections that are perfect for “A Valentine Concert”. Valentine’s Day is always a lot of fun, and I encourage folks to celebration love, the theme of love, the meaning of love anytime-all the time, but more especially to that special someone on February 14th! The expressing of an individual’s love for another person is something special. I often caution folks on using the expression. If you listen to some folks talk they “love” everyone from just their statements but I doubt that they truly do. I myself, I am much more reserved on using the expression “I love you”. There are many ways to express love. There is brotherly love, which in the Greek is called Philia Love. It is the love of friends, the connection of two people who cannot be broken. In today’s society there are many friendship enjoyed by folks but to express your friendship as a love relationship is one that is not experienced by most. Love can be expressed as Eros, which is defined in the Greek by sexuality, the pleasure and enjoyment of physical pleasures and expressions. The final Biblical love talked about in the Bible is Agape love. It is the unconditional love displayed through Jesus Christ and the love of the Father, God for each of us, His unique creation. Unconditional love is the most difficult to understand because it is a Godly love that is fully charitable to you and I. In scripture we read that” God demonstrated His love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, He died for us”, Romans 5:8. This is a difficult love to understand because most of us act only when it is a benefit to us personally. We are humans who like to protect ourselves first, without getting involved and risking our resources, much less possibly our lives. Yet God sent His son Jesus to die in our place and this act of love was totally unconditional. Meaning, we don’t have to respond or react to this demonstration at all and He, God, still loves us. I find that type of love sometimes very difficult to explain, but it is the very love I am placing my trust completely in. Friday, February 14th will be a great day to say thanks to Jesus Christ for dying in our place and a perfect day to also introduce someone to His love by telling them your discovery of His love and plan. This Valentine’s Day will also be a perfect day to enjoy the free gift of music by folks who love to sing, love to share and will be lending their voices to fill the air with love at Conway Boatman Chapel at Union College Barbourville. Until then

R.S.V.P. - What a friend we have in Jesus

February is the shortest month of the year and this includes even when February is celebrating her leap year experience. If I could have scheduled or picked the day I was born on, my first choice would have been on February 29th. My thoughts are that with such a unique day occurring only once every seven years I would be sure to have a big birthday celebration. After all you would think your friends would be up for the event especially since it happens so rarely, right? To me, I believe this type of long range planning makes perfect sense. However I am sure some friends would not want to schedule their attendance and participation so far in advance given the hopes of something better coming along. Planning this way seems to be a practice of many, even if it is not defined as such. 'Holding Out' until the last minute to survey your options sounds in theory like a great practice. Timing is always important in so many decisions and opportunities too. When everything seems so right the only question to ask is how or why can things go so wrong with our choices. There are a lot of reasons how this happens, for example lets take my idea birthday date. In the mountains folks don't really take so seriously the favor of a reply in an invitation. Not sure why this is, I can only assume it has something to do with 'Holding Out'. R.S.V.P. represents a French phrase, "répondez, s'il vous plaît," which means "please reply." If we want to keep good healthy friendships, communicating in a responsible and requesting type fashion sounds like a great practice too. If you agree then maybe you are someone that has had the experience of planning for an event and then folks not showing up, or folks showing up and you then go into scramble mode to accommodate them, even though they didn't reply. It would be appropriate to have someone greet quest at a planned event, check folks in as they arrive to verify they had properly replied to your invitation. For those who had properly responded how neat would it be to escort then inside and to provide a formal introduction to the event attendees. All the while, for those who had decided to not R.S.V.P., they could have a comfortable seat to allow those guest who followed proper protocol to proceed. Now you and I know if we did this we would make folks mad. Some of our friends would be insulted that they had to wait while others were being escorted in, but then again, why they would be upset really doesn't make an sense. Oh the balance of things is delicate indeed. To miss out on something that was planned for your participation hurts if you have ever been turned away. Most of the time event planners feel guilty if they turn folks away, especially when your participation was wanted and requested to begin with. The guilt is misplaced without a doubt but that is the way many of 'we humans' operate. We'd rather accommodate, re-arrange and plan to pay for more place settings then to hold are friends responsible. How we treat each other seems rather important when you consider the event situation I am writing about in this column. Yet, at the forefront, the importance and favor of a reply doesn't seem so significant but in reality it actually is. A person could say to themselves I don't like to reply because I am not sure what is going to happen, and we tell ourselves something at work might happen, and it might. We tell ourselves someone could be sick, they could be in the hospital, and this might happen too. We even tell ourselves that we are so busy we need a little bit of time, so when we have forgotten we can share it slipped our mind and believe our excuse should be pardon. All things we might say to ourselves instead of just making a decision and making the best of every opportunity or situation. I venture to say that 'we humans', your friends would understand clearly when things come up, but there is nothing like the favor of a reply, and the call to cancel with regrets that builds and strengthens a friendship either. Not sure about your R.S.V.P.'s but what a friend we have in Jesus! Until then

Al Gore/Global Warming - Jesus/Forgiveness & Love

When it comes to the weather, any condition honestly, there is one name and one phrase. Al Gore and Global Warming. I don't know a single adult who doesn't have an opinion on the subject of Global Warming and Al Gore regarding this topic. I was recently talking about this issue of Global Warming with a group that is from the current teen generation and I was amazed that they didn't even realize Al Gore was the former Vice-President of the United States. When I got to thinking about it, 1993 was 21 years ago, so maybe that fact of history has been lost in all the discussion about this issue of Global Warming. Amazing to me what happens when time passes and we become singular focused on one thing. For former Vice President Al Gore it is climate change, environmental issues, that include the entire cross section of issues and not just toxic waste and greenhouse gas emissions. Agree or disagree with his position, the fact is that since 1977 when he was elected to the United States House of Representatives he has been involved in the discussion. His freshman year in the House began his public work and his efforts have never ceased on the issue. Good or bad, believe or not believe in the issue of Global Warming, I respect his "stick to it" attitude. I believe there is much to be learned from such a determined and resolute position. What we say about people and the manner in which we talk about them for the causes they support, advocate for, or defend says a lot about us as individuals too. I became a Christian in 1974. I have not always been an avid, staunch, clearly identifiable follower of Jesus. There have been many times I should have spoken up, stepped out, and clearly identified with my beliefs but I didn't. Oh, if I could have received awards and honors for my position that sounds positive and absolutely count me in for that, but to be criticized, have my thoughts openly discussed, and perhaps be personally made fun of, please I'd like to stay away from that negative situation. I think no doubt, the majority of you reading this column would agree. Joining positives things is a good decision and staying away from the negative makes perfect sense. However I am not sure that this is the best decision to follow as a ruling guide in our lives as Christians. Consider just the fact of who Jesus went and had dinner with. In Matthew 9:10 he went to Matthew's house! He was a tax collector and at this dinner particularly, Matthew had invited his other tax collector friends to come and meet Jesus too. Eating dinner with sinners what was Jesus thinking?...that is the same question that the religious Pharisees asked too. Friends and who we associate with seem to be for some a defining statement. For Jesus people certainly had an opinion about this decision Jesus made. Thinking about today's climate, I have friends that are totally loyal democrats they are blue all the way. I have republican friends that are red all the way. I could joke and ask why would anyone want to be a donkey or an elephant? Jesus paid no attention to the thoughts of others or to the comments others made about Him. In Luke 11:38 there was a question raised about Jesus and Him not washing His hands before a meal. There was after all a ceremonially act of hand-washing and the Pharisees were so upset that Jesus had not performed this Jewish custom. Allow me to share that this dinning experience invitation had been issued to Jesus by a Pharisee. This invitation is proof that even an expert in the law can be curious to learn and discover for himself what Jesus was all about. Inviting Jesus to dinner was certainly a great way to accomplish this goal. Nothing like first hand encounters and first person testimonies. If you ask me my position on Global Warming I can certainly say it has been 'cold as ice' and there is a relationship between warming and cooling. If you ask me about Jesus Christ I can say without a doubt that He is the one and there is a relationship between forgiveness and love. Until then

Roller Coaster - 2014 Recommended Attitude

Now sure how positive you are in your attitude about 2014, but I am interested in hearing your thoughts. You could be one that is expecting 2014 to be a great year or a more productive year than last year. You could someone that is not sure what to expect so you are bracing for the worse of things in hopes of just surviving. Either way I am confident we've all done a little of both. I am sure about several things in life. For some, they had high hopes beginning in 2014 and already they are facing their nightmare, unemployment. Returning from the holidays to discover the company has taken a different direction, or that your services are no longer needed can be heart breaking. I know a lady who has enjoyed her employment with the same company for many years. Before Christmas she heard of lay-offs and possible terminations. She step forward went to her supervisors and said with a severance offer I am willing to go and begin my retirement now. Even a decision like this described, while voluntarily can be challenging too. The best possible way to enjoy 2014 is to have the roller coaster attitude. If you dislike roller coasters than I am pretty sure there is nothing about this example you are going to like. This however could also be the the key to success. Riding a roller coaster use to be simple. You would sit down, a bar would fold over your lap and you would ride a rail on a wooden track and within a minute or so the ride would be over. Today, there are still wooden tracks but the design of the roller coaster has changed drastically. On some roller coasters you can stand the entire time. Yes I wrote stand and this includes going upside down while you are standing too. I am still not sure how my feet remained inside, ok I understand "G" forces but still yet it is amazing that when the experience of going upside down, and around, and back over, and upside down again, and I have remained inside the apparatus that I've was strapped into is still holding me...I am a pretty happy guy. The experience of a roller coaster ride that seems to be pushing and pulling, your hips going from side to side in the seat, your head bobbing forward and backwards, the thought of raising your hands up into the air seems totally crazy. My first roller coaster experiences were death grips on the bar in front of me. Holding up my hands was totally out of the question. I can remember thinking if you did that there would be a great possibility that something would hit your hands and "off a limb" would go. Not sure what it was that moved me to let go of the hand rail and the safety rail, but for whatever reason I gradually did let go and now I can ride with my hands up in the air nearly almost all of the rides experience. There is something that must be said for letting go and trusting not only in an amusement park ride, but in life too. I am writing this column because I know what it is to hold on to things, jobs, titles, positions, places and even people. The struggle to let go even if we are strapped in can be a challenge. Riding in a river boat with a glass bottom is an experience and walking out on an overlook over a canyon or mountain bluff that has a glass floor can be not only scary but truly frightening. I get it, when I write I understand. I've been there and done that too. Our attitude about 2014 sets not only a pace but maybe more importantly an expectation. There is no way to predict what is going to happen or even where you will be in 7 months from now. We can anticipate, plan and expect to be where we want to be, but no guarantees that we will find ourselves there when that time arrives. Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem. Born in a manager and yet his parents had to fear for His life immediately. In the temple as a young boy Jesus found himself at home asking questions and learning but His parents would again be fearful when they realized they were traveling and He had been left behind. Fear again when Jesus began his public ministry and while others embraced Him, others would begin to plot how to destroy this one that some were calling the Son of God and the Savior of the World. Unanswered questions often leave us wondering. Peace is the only answer and I've discovered that comes through a relationship with Him. Until then

Loaded DOWN or Loaded UP

Happy New Year! 2014 is off and running and quite honestly I feel like I am in a horse and buggy race and I wasn't in the buggy when the race started! There is absolutely nothing like trying to participate in the race and trying to run and catch up to get in the buggy seat. If you are feeling exhausted with me already, please allow me to say thanks for feeling my pain. With all the planning that I do and organizing of events and activities I do plan for down time. Traditionally it is called a vacation but I prefer to simply call it my time! Yes I do turn the phone off, I do not answer emails, no texting either. The only thing I can say for certain is that I will take a lot of pictures. With the creation of the digital camera and the ability to just delete, I am a picture taking crazy man. With the exhausted feeling that has arrived so early in 2014 I am confident that I will need to fall back on my 'old rules of life'. One of my 'old rules of life' includes two full weeks of vacation and three weekend getaways. I have often been told that with my travel schedule, road and highway miles I am on vacation all the time because I am seeing different sights all the time. I understand that line of thinking and I appreciate all the sights I get to see. The down side is leaving to drive somewhere in the early AM and then returning just as late as your early leaving hours can really zap your energy. Not exactly my idea of a vacation. I understand the value of seeing new sights and I am well know for stopping on the side of a road for a photo. Capturing the beauty of life and then sharing that photo is a practice I enjoy. Rivers, mountain views, railroads, old houses, fences, cars, rocks, stacks of wood, road signs, courthouses, trees and statues I appreciate. Trying to run full speed to catch back up with life where it ran off and left you, is never any fun. I have heard folks say it is ok if you lag behind or need to catch up. They suggest all that is necessary is to sprint full speed, catch back back up to the group and all will be fine. In theory, the practice sounds like a plan that works. My experience has often been that when I sprint full speed ahead attempting to regain my lost ground, I find myself totally out of breathe, gasping for air, and then falling even further behind because I couldn't keep up with the pace even though I was able to regain the pace for a short time. I first shared my exhaustion by giving the example of knowing I should have been sitting in the buggy seat when the race started. If we are honest, no matter how hard we try, without a miracle, or at least the horse stopping to let me climb aboard, it is highly unlikely this situation ends good. I believe there are many moments in life where situations create an ever so gloomy outlook and the prospects of turning things around might appear to be hopeless. I have already said that I feel this way already so the only question to ask is what is the answer? The answer is just the opposite of what the common perception or tendency to believe would be. Running full speed to only exhaust yourself is not the answer. The perception that you would need to work harder, fight to get ahead has merits, but that concept alone is full of failure too. The tendency is to do whatever it takes to regain your position or status in the race. This too will leave you empty, along with exhausted and frustrated because of the lack of accomplishment in achieving your goals. The answer is to reconsider your plans. Maybe competing is not the proper way to view your goals. Maybe you should be considering the concept of perfect timing in all things. "Keeping up with the Jones Family" has never been a healthy choice. Giving yourself permission to run the race at our own pace would be a wise decision. Having participated in marathon events, my goal from my beginning preparations have always been to simply finish the race. No, God will not put more on us then we can bear. It is we that load ourselves down and not him. Until then