Thursday’s, (August 26, 2010) New York Times National Page ran a story about pastor Terry Jones, a small church pastor in Florida who is planning a bonfire service to burn Korans at the anniversary of the September 11 attacks. I saw this article and immediately see the implications. One thing that the Army has taught me is the massive impact one individual can have on the rest of the Army and the country at large. I see how it may affect the terrorists and encourage them to attack US troops.
We must always focus on the larger picture. For me, that larger picture is the gospel. I want all people to come to know Christ as their living Savior, so that they may escape Hell and live for Jesus every day. The problem when we get sidetracked on political issues, whether or not it is religiously based or not, we get sidetracked on the side issues people are having—and not where we should be.
In regards to the Koran burning; this provides ammunition for the enemy to place this information on YouTube and push it out so that it may be added and combined with other videos or combined with other information then used to bolster the terrorist support.
It is critical, in this day and age, to understand that when you make a statement—the rest of the world is watching and a man with a church of only 50 people can impact thousands. This is a new day—one that many of us still have a difficult time understanding. It is the age of 24 Hour news—all battling with the most shocking story as to get the most viewers. Shocking is what gets place front and center—whether you want it to or not.
I do not know Pastor Jones, nor do I know his motives. From my reading of the article, it seems as if he was taken off-guard by the media frenzy. What he, and many other people, do not understand is how our actions can become huge issues in a matter of hours—if not minutes.
Now is the time, more than ever, to think through our every action and determine our message—and focus on that. If his goal is to be the church that stands against Islam—well, he’s done it. If this is a piece of a large over-arching message—which I would think it was—he has failed. This age calls for new thinking in what is said and done—at every stage and weighed on whether the stand—and the method of the stand—is truly worth the price that will be paid.
<<UPDATE: 9SEP10–The Koran burning story has been a headline in the news as the date of 11SEP10 approaches. I feel that it is necessary to add a reminder that the views contained in this blog post are mine, and mine alone–they are NOT intended in any way to represent the official statements or policy of the US Army nor the US Army Chief of Chaplains Office. Please see the disclaimer on the sidebar of this blog for more information.>>