The Very First Responder

There are two types of people in this world - those who see a need and do nothing, and those who actually make an effort and do something about it. Why the difference? What makes one person keep walking while the other one stops?

“A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. ³¹A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. ³²So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. ³⁴He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

³⁶“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” - Luke 10:30-36

That, of course, was Jesus' parable of The Good Samaritan. But why didn't the other two men stop? They were both "religious." Shouldn't THEY have shown mercy? And that was exactly Jesus' point.

Let's fast forward to a present day hypothetical scenario. There is a shooting, or gang members are beating up a cop. Where are the good samaritans now? Everyone is videoing the event, but no one is DOING anything.

The term "first responder" is kind of a misnomer. We give the term to our police, firefighters, and paramedics. But really, the very FIRST responder is the one who called 9-1-1. Right?

"For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead." - James 2:26

In the parable, Jesus was showing the  differences in their hearts, not their social or religious position in life. Basically, the condition of the heart is more important than any social or religious standing.

I am a Christian, but if I do nothing with my faith, I myself am nothing. Dead. Just another bad example in this parable we call life.

This past Saturday, my wife noticed a neighbor's "tree branch" had fallen onto the road. When we ventured outside to move it we discovered it was more like half of the tree. I scurried back to the house and got my chainsaw. Soon it was all cut up and moved out of the way, the roadway cleared. Although cars went by as we were working, no one stopped to help the two old folks clearing their roadway for them.

My wife and I didn't really think anything about it. Neither of us filmed ourselves or took selfies together with the fallen tree. We saw a need, we took care of it, and returned to our home.

It's pretty simple, this Christian life we live. It's "Golden Rule" simple. The question is, how will WE respond?

Save The Nipples!!

Do you have nipples? Just about everybody does. Do you like your nipples? Would you like to keep them? Then this story is for you! Read on!

A few nights ago I took a refresher course in CPR (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation) and AED use (Automated Exterior Defibrillator) from the American Heart Association. Guess what. I passed! Now, if anyone has a heart malfunction in my vicinity I can help them out. Yay!

However, there were some "interesting" things I learned in my training that surprised me and everyone else in the room as well. One of them might be very important to you if you have any body piercings. Keep reading. Here are some of the things I learned.

• There is a difference between a "heart attack" and "cardiac arrest." A heart attack is a blockage problem. Cardiac Arrest is an "electrical " problem. Read more about it here.
• Use of an AED in cardiac arrest cases increases your chances of survival from 10% to over 30%.
• If you are wearing a bra, whether ye be man or woman . . . it is coming off! The wire inside can short circuit the AED's effectiveness.
• If you have a hairy chest, man or woman, it won't be hairy for long. We have been instructed to dry-shave it where the AED pads go.
• If you have any body piercings that are within 2" of the AED pads (like nipple rings or studs), we have been instructed to remove them . . . by grabbing them . . . and ripping them off. That's right. Ripping them off!

That last little bit of information might sound somewhat extreme but, when the alternative is death, would most people really mind?

Sin in our lives is a lot like having a nipple ring. We might like it. We might think it makes us look cool. But unless it is removed we have no chance of survival. We're going to die and that's that.

The thing that sucks is, no matter how hard we try to be good or to keep our nipples in one piece, we can never stay clean enough by ourselves to have any hope of life after death.

There is some good news though. It is possible to be saved, body piercings and all, by placing your faith and hope in Jesus. He knows exactly how to save a heart that has gone bad. And He won't rip your nipples off!

I have nothing against piercings I guess. But then again, I kind of do. Piercings and tattoos are an outward expression of the inner self. They cry out "Look at me!" Shouldn't we really be saying "Look at Jesus?"

"7 “Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! 8 And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire." - Matthew 8:7-9

Nothing But The Blood - Matt Redman