Tuesday, September 27, 2011

A Lesson In Cuba



I have had the great privilege and honor of ministering in Cuba on multiple occasions. One time, after I had finished speaking in a wonderful church in Havana, the pastor of the church asked me if I knew the difference between Cuban Christians and American Christians.


"What is the difference?" I asked the pastor.


"Here in Cuba, we do not have the distractions that you have in America," he responded.


The Cuban pastor was absolutely correct.


Here in the USA, our high-speed lives are filled with the likes of iPhone, iPad, Xbox, Wii, texting, tweeting, Facebooking, and a million other distractions that cause us to busy ourselves more and to glorify God less.


In Cuba, the average person makes about $5-10 a month. Yes, you read that right.


In Cuba, the average person cannot afford to buy a computer, let alone have access to high-speed, or even low-speed, Internet. The same goes for the average Cuban not being able to own an iPhone, iPad, Xbox, Wii, or being able to text, tweet, or Facebook.


But in Cuba, the Christians are not as distracted as we are here in America.


Distractions are ruining the American church.


Distractions have caused us to stop gazing heavenward.


In Matthew 6:33 (NKJV), Jesus says, "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness ...."


Too frequently in America today we seek pleasurable, amusing, and entertaining distractions instead of the kingdom of God and His righteousness.


It took a Cuban pastor to show me this. And he was right.

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