At my house, if you walk away from the toaster, your breakfast will burn.

Stay awake, stay alert, stay vigilant — that’s part of living as a Christian. Lady in Waiting, original oil painting by Steve Henderson; licensed prints at iCanvasART, Framed Canvas Art, and Amazon.com.

In the same way that people in my household who want decent toast do not leave the room or drink tea, dreamily incognizant  of the evil appliance on the counter, Christians must keep — in the back of our minds at all time — the awareness that this world is not our home, heaven does not exist down here right now, and the world of men — its politics, educational institutions, corporate entities, medical establishment, legal system, media, entertainment industry — are not set up to proclaim, honor, obey, or celebrate God.

Allow me to add, in a separate paragraph for emphasis, to the list above — its religious arena. Just because a person, a denomination, a group, a magazine, a charitable organization, or a business announces that it is Christian and teaches the way of Christ — does. not. mean. that. this. is. so.

There-in is where many Christians are allowing the toast to burn, abstractedly inattentive to warning after warning in the Bible about wolves that enter the sheepfold, false teachers who promote bad doctrine, apple trees that bear Twinkies.

Please follow the link to Stay Alert: Burnt Toast Is the Least of Our Concerns, at my BeliefNet blog, Commonsense Christianity.