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New Zealand
New Generation is the youth ministry of the Assemblies Of God in New Zealand. Braden and Andrea Matson are the facilitators and are working with Youth Pastors around the country to equip young people to reach a nation.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Michael Guggliemucci

By now most of you would have heard about the recent news that Mike Guglielmucci has confessed that his so-called battle with terminal illness was a fraud. This is a mind-boggling turn of events that is sending shock waves throughout the Christian community.

A whole range of emotions emerge when something such as this comes to the surface - from anger to compassion. There are also some personal challenges that I identify:

One is for me to examine everything in the hidden depths of my heart.

The second is to look at my attitudes. At a time like this it is very easy for Christians to 'devour' each other. Hear is a question for you. When you heard about Mike did you run to the the phone to let someone else know, or did you pray for him, his family, and the many people who will be impacted by this event? Why? Hmm....

Also, why is it htat we often look to people for our foundations in faith rather than to God? Yes, people are going to let us down and dissappoint us, but our trust is not in them.

I am uncomfortable with many of the rants on the internet about the matter, so instead, my focus will be to examine myself.

Mal Fletcher has some insightful thoughts on the matter.

Mark Conner shares the following:

More details about the Mike Guglielmucci story continue to unfold. This tragic event may end up being just a minor blip on the radar as far as the media goes but the effects within the church world may continue to build momentum for quite a while yet. After all, he's one us - a follower of Christ.

Having read the myriad of comments on my and other blogs, it is clear that there is a diversity of thoughts and feelings on this issue. I think the challenge for us all at this time is to seek to find a balance of Grace AND Truth, two things that Jesus was filled with (John 1:14).

The danger is when we go to either extreme - Truth only without Grace OR Grace only without reference to Truth. Jesus modeled these two important aspects in perfect balance. His response to the woman caught in adultery was radical Grace - 'neither do I condemn you' - AND radical Truth - 'go and leave your life of sin'.

Posted by Braden Matson

1 comment:

Bruce Crozier said...

Great thoughts Braden. Many youth I know have been impacted by Mike and the news was hard for them to take. I encouraged them to pray for him. I also told them that the work God had done in their lives through Mike's ministry was still valid. It was God's work through an imperfect vessel.
It can be so easy to focus on a man (or woman) and forget that they are fallible. My prayers are with Mike and those affected by this.