The Voice of One

Blameless or Sanctified?

2010-12-31T10:00:00.000-05:00

Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it. 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

Blamelessness, I believe, is when our heart is pure, our motives are pure. There may be blind spots in our lives that God doesn't hold us responsible for, and He holds us blameless as we are "living up to the light that we have".

Sanctification on the other hand, is God's work to bring us into greater light. Even though we may be blameless, our sins of ignorance can have hurtful effects on ourselves and others.

God's desire is to bring greater understanding, and as we respond through repentance and faith, then we become more sanctified.

"He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it." This is the rub. God is ever concerned with our sanctification, and is willing to allow any and all circumstances to come our way to expose those areas that are still hidden and hurtful.

Do we sometimes go around the same mountain for forty years? Is it because God is relentlessly pursuing our sanctification, and we may be resisting?

While His sanctifying work is not usually enjoyable, His desire is to bring us to a place of greater fullness and life. Thus He is committed to our sanctification.

For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. You brought us into the net; you laid a crushing burden on our backs; you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance. Psalm 66:10-12

(copied from www.davidsouthwick.net)

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An Integral Part of Saving People

2010-12-24T10:18:00.000-05:00

Somehow in the great scheme of salvation, it became necessary for the Infinite to become finite, subjected to and raised by those who knew less than Him. The Almighty God became vulnerable, weak, dependent, and helpless, as an integral part of his plan to save people from their sin. He came from heaven, and became a child.

Then during His ministry, Jesus made an astounding statement to those who would be saved:

"Truly I say to you, unless you change and become like little children, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven."

Jesus became a little child. We can only become LIKE a little child. And we must. We must become vulnerable, weak, dependent, and helpless. We must be teachable toward people who know less than us. We must become vulnerable to those who could hurt us. Without doing this, Jesus says, we will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

(copied from www.davidsouthwick.net.)

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Servant of All

2010-12-21T09:58:00.000-05:00

Reflecting upon the principle Jesus shared about people who want to be great in God's kingdom, I realized something a little ... uncomfortable. I realize there are some people I don't mind serving. There are others whom I would prefer not to serve. Jesus clearly saw that sometimes we wouldn't mind serving 'important' people. In fact we might readily volunteer to help them. With others, it may be more of a struggle. But Jesus was clear, we must become servants of all. This (and nothing else, I suppose) is greatness in God's kingdom.

(copied from www.davidsouthwick.net)
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Expressing Thanks to God

2010-11-22T10:05:00.000-05:00

I am often thankful to God for His blessings. It is important, however, to express my thankfulness verbally, not just in my head as a prayer to God.

There is something powerful that happens when we say what we think. There is a real transferrance to the heart.

Paul talked about this regarding salvation, "with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved" (Romans 10:10). Salvation isn't just through believing, but stating, confessing what we believe.

When I teach strumming and rhythm to my guitar students, it is imperative they count out loud so their hands can 'hear' the count. At times when they don't count, often the timing and rhythm veers off.

It is vital to express verbally our thanksgiving to God. It actually makes us more thankful, believe it or not.

Hebrews 13:15 says, "By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name."

(copied from www.davidsouthwick.net.)

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Where is Jesus in the Trials?

2010-02-08T07:38:00.002-05:00

All of us are faced with trials, difficulties and crises. The past two months were very trying for me personally. James 1 says to "Consider it all joy when you encounter various trials", but I don't know that I've ever been able to do that.

The Nature of Man vs. The Nature of Jesus
My nature is to resist and run from trials, trouble, conflict, hardship, difficulty. I kick and fight, cry and whine. I want Jesus to take me out of trouble, and solve the difficulty. I want Jesus, but I don't want the trials.

Jesus' nature is totally different. He began his journey to the earth by emptying himself, becoming less -- a man. He became a lesser man, a servant; and then he died a shameful, torturous, criminal's death (Phil. 2:6-8). His direction was toward difficulty, hardship and trial; toward rejection, hatred, and pain. And he didn't turn back.

Paul says that I am to have the attitude that Jesus had (Phil. 2:5), that I am to lay aside the old nature, and take up Christ's nature (Rom. 6, Col. 3).

Consider it All Joy
Albert Barnes says that we aren't supposed to consider our trials "as a punishment, a curse or a calamity", we are to consider it joy. What impacted me in his statement is that it is easy to question if our adversity is coming from God being displeased with us, or maybe it is coming from sin in our lives, or even from the devil himself. But James' exhortation to us is to first consider it joy, not defaulting to the position that maybe we sinned and brought trials on ourselves.

Hebrews 12 talks about God disciplining those he loves. This word doesn't specifically imply punishment, but rather training. Trouble is a natural part of living. And God is resourceful enough to use all of life for my discipline, for my training, for my good.

Where is Jesus in the Trials?
I've recently learned to move the question mark in the above statement: Where is Jesus? In the trials.

I want Jesus. But I've found when I try to distance myself from my trials, I am moving in the direction opposite Jesus. If I want Jesus, I need to put on His nature and not bail in the struggle.

A Great Picture
Three men's response to the greatest trial of their lives was, "God is able to deliver us, but even if he doesn't..." And Jesus went ahead of them into the fiery furnace and met with them there.

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The Image of Christ

2009-12-11T10:50:00.001-05:00

I’ve recently discovered that what I resist in fellow Christians comes from me comparing them to the image of Christ, and finding fault. In reality, I’m not comparing them to the image of Christ, but rather to the image of me.

The only one qualified to measure people by Christ’s image is Christ Himself. Do I completely understand the image of Jesus? No. Besides, the image of Jesus has more to do with internal issues than external expressions.

I realize I’ve become more concerned with how their actions adversely affect me. I’m not really caring about them being conformed to the likeness of Jesus. If I was, I would be asking Jesus how to pray for them to be conformed to His image. Jesus sees there are more important issues in their lives than simply how their choices impact me.

And He’s resourcefully using them to help mold me into His image.

“Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” Galatians 6:2 (NKJV).

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What is There to be Thankful For?

2009-11-24T17:01:00.002-05:00

Life is grim
The world is gray
Things go from bad to worse

The snow is unavoidable
The plumbing fixes are temporary
The tires need replaced (again)

Friends fail
Bills pile up
Kids fight
The dog does you know what in the house

There is so much to be unthankful for
But unthankfulness darkens my soul
So I’m thankful for thankfulness
Thankfulness makes my life full

Life may be tough – at least I’m alive
The world, gray today, constantly changes color
Things go from bad to worse, yet it all works together for good

The snow is coming, so I’ll enjoy its beauty
The plumbing leaks; something the Amish don’t have to worry about
The tires need replaced; that means I have wheels

Friends fail; at least I have them
Though bills pile up, I have what I need for today
The kids fight, but they do not dictate my mood
The dog? I can get rid of the dog!

There is so much to be thankful for
Thankfulness brightens my soul
Yes, I’m thankful for thankfulness
Thankfulness makes my life full

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The Kingdom of Heaven is NOT Like...

2009-11-24T09:56:00.005-05:00

a fireman picking and choosing which people he wants to rescue from a burning building
an orchestra with only a cello

a flashlight shone directly in someone's eyes

a man who tries to coerce a woman to love him

a wealthy man hosting a banquet and inviting only his friends and family

Very Unofficial Guide to Gauging Coffee

2009-11-24T09:22:00.002-05:00

Yesterday I drank coffee at a local restaurant, and the only comparison I could give it was to the kick of a .410 shotgun. In fact most of the coffee served at local restaurant would fit that comparison.

One location in town (which will remain anonymous) might qualify for the kick of the 20-gauge, not a bad coffee, and the best I've tasted at an in-town restaurant.

Let's see, some store bought 100% Colombian might attain the 16-gauge comparison.

All bias aside, I would compare my home-roasted Sumatra Mandheling to the kick of the 12-gauge.

"What about decaf?" you might ask. Have you ever fired bird-shot from a .22 rifle?

Acrostic Poem from my Son Ben

2009-11-19T10:28:00.008-05:00

I just wanted to share with you all this Acrostic Poem written by Benjamin last week:

Devoted, never leaving your side
Obeying, listening to your every command
Generous, giving you all they are, no matter what they receive in return
Solicitous, concerned and loving

Cheap, only doing whats best for themselves
Aggravating, so repulsive
Terrible, only looking out for what will benefit them
Sneaky, suspicious

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Drawing People to God

2009-08-25T15:27:00.008-04:00

My religious little mind was slightly surprised at Ruth's claim that Naomi's God would be her God (Ruth 1:16). It appears she didn't know who God was, but she knew who Naomi was. She doesn't say she will follow Naomi because Naomi follows God. It's the other way around. She wasn't drawn to God because of himself, but because she loved who Naomi was.

Interestingly, it doesn't appear that God is offended with this. Religion might be, but God isn't. In fact, God rewards Ruth when she returns to Israel: she finds a great husband, and then has children and grandchildren -- even descendants which include King David and Jesus Christ.

These thoughts challenge my perspective in drawing people to Christ.

Interesting Youtube Video on Coffee Cupping

2009-06-25T10:09:00.003-04:00

Please let me know what you think about this video by leaving a comment below!

Did you leave a comment???

The Little Rock That Was Different

2009-06-03T06:48:00.009-04:00

A Story for My Son

There once was a Little Rock dwelling among a thousand other rocks scattered on the Hillside. This rock was a sad rock, for as it happened, he was different than all the other rocks around him. Sure each rock was different. But he was more different.

His color wasn't quite the same. His shape wasn't as rough and jagged. All the other rocks teased him for being different.

Many days Travelers would walk up and down the Hillside. Many rocks enjoyed the weight of boots and shoes upon their backs, knowing they were helping carry People to their destination.

But not Little Rock. He was afraid the travelers would also make fun of him. He tried to hide his color and his unusual shape. When that didn't help, he just tried to hide. Little Rock was miserable and depressed. He wondered why God had made him so different.

One day an unusual Traveler came up the Hillside. He wasn't content to walk straight up the slope. He seemed to be wandering. No. Inspecting. He was picking up rocks, and then throwing them aside. Little Rock knew if he was found, he would be discarded too. And he just knew he would be found.

Eventually, the Traveler spotted Little Rock. He picked him up and inspected him carefully. Instead of being thrown aside, something worse happened. The Traveler put Little Rock in a tiny burlap sack that he tied to his belt.

It was dark. He was lonely. It seemed things always got worse for Little Rock.

He didn't know how many days had passed before he was finally taken out of the burlap. A Person placed him between two pieces of metal that clamped down on him and squeezed him. He wasn't very comfortable. And he was scared.

Suddenly he was blinded by a light strapped to the Person's head. He couldn't see what was happening. BANG. OUCH! Little Rock was being attacked by a chisel. The Person kept hammering and chipping away at him.

He had never known such pain, such suffering. He longed to be back on the Hillside. He longed for answers from God.

More time passed. Little Rock had been turned, hammered, chiseled and ouched in every way possible. When the hurting stopped, he was placed on some piece of metal which was shaped around him to hold him down. Fingers of metal held him firmly.

Then he was covered in darkness by a thick cloth. This must be the end, he thought. It wasn't enough to be tossed away on the Hillside. I must be so awful, I needed to be tortured before being thrown out.

After a long period of being moved and bumped about, there was the growing sound of many, many People talking and laughing and singing. It sounded like a celebration. This went on for hours, and Little Rock wished he could see what was going on. He was beginning to feel a happiness he had never known, but he didn't know why.

There was a sudden hush, and then the sound of one Man speaking.

Without any notice, the cloth that covered Little Rock was removed. Little Rock could see thousands of People. He saw a Young Man sitting beside him, wearing clothing of purple and red.

He could see the metal that held him firmly. It was a bright and shiny yellow, and it curved away from his view on his left and right side. He thought he could also see some other colorful rocks sticking out from the sides of this metal object. It was sparkly. It was beautiful. It was sitting on a large red pillow.

Excitement grew inside Little Rock as this beautiful object was lifted in the air and placed on the head of the Young Man. Immediately, trumpets sounded and People sang.

Little Rock was shocked to find himself 'front and center', taking his part in adorning the new King. He instantly knew he didn't have to be afraid any longer. He realized God had a good reason for all the hurt and pain he had endured. And he discovered that his uniqueness was a gift that would not be hidden, and it would serve the King for a long time to come.

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The Devil's Battleground

2009-04-29T15:15:00.002-04:00

It's been said that the majority of people's self-esteem is based on what they think others think about them. Many become the puppeteer behind others' voices in their minds. They live out their lives, stuck in the track of speculation about people's views of their worth. And they are constrained by what others have said in the past, having come to a place of surrender and acquiescence to these ideas.

Paul’s hope was that people would “come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil” 2 Timothy 2:26. The persistent thoughts contrary to God’s word are strongholds of the enemy. These oppose the true knowledge that comes from God about who we are in him. According to 2 Corinthians 10:4-5, this is the devil’s battleground.

God’s word is filled with many amazing declarations about who we are in Christ Jesus. Most Christians I survey, say they believe the Bible is 100% true, and yet their lives demonstrate a stark contrast to what the Bible claims is available for them.

The devil has won the battle in their minds, and has rendered them powerless, at least for anything substantial for God’s kingdom.

Paul exhorts several times that we be renewed in our minds (Romans 12:2, Ephesians 4:23) and that we take every thought captive and bring it under the obedience of Christ (2 Corinthians 10:4,5).

Colossians 2:10 says, “You are complete in him.” I hope you can believe this. If not, check out some of these other scriptures: 2 Peter 1:3,4, Romans 8:34-39, and 2 Corinthians 5:17.

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I Bleeb I'b Eeled (Part 3)

2009-04-21T12:13:00.005-04:00

The last two posts on this subject emphasize a couple important points in the mysterious area of healing. Cessationists say God doesn’t heal today. Non-cessationists say he does, yet many times struggle with the difference between their experiences and their understanding of Scripture.

Two important things we’ve covered in the area of healing are: 1) Listen to what God is saying about the physical affliction – then you can pray in faith in response to what he is directing. 2) Scripture also tells us in the book of James to call the elders of the church to have them pray for us when we are sick. Sometimes this simple act of faith is a huge mountain-mover in healing.

One Final Thought
Although there are many things yet to be discovered as to the ways of God in healing, I will close these posts with one more principle I became convinced of nearly five years ago. There is a connection between “authority in Christ” and healing.

• In Genesis, God begins by placing mankind in authority over every living thing on the earth. (Side notes: Are viruses and bacterial infections living things? Was Satan a living thing on the earth at that time?)
• David reiterates that this authority was not lost through the Fall – Psalm 8.
• The centurion recognized the connection between authority and healing in Matthew 8:5-13.
• The crowd were awed that God had given authority to men (not just Jesus) to forgive sins and to heal – Matthew 9:2-8.
• Jesus gave his disciples and the seventy authority over sickness and disease and over demons, and commanded them to heal and cast out demons – Matthew 10, Mark 6, Luke 9, Luke 10:1-20. Jesus told them, “Freely you have received, freely give.” What had they just received? Authority.
• Jesus has given his authority to every believer (Matthew 18:19-20, 28:18-20, Mark 16:17, John 14:12-14, 15:16, 16:23-26).

Praying in Jesus’ Name
I don’t suppose any Christian would argue that we are instructed to pray in Jesus’ name. Most of the times we finish a prayer like this: “... in Jesus’ name, Amen.” Jesus instructed us to pray and ask in his name. But do we realize that “in Jesus’ name” means “in Jesus’ authority”? In the Greek, name also means “authority”.

You’ve probably heard a similar phrase to this one: “Open up in the name of the king!” This means all the king’s authority is backing up the officer of the law.

Jesus authorizes us to represent him, to act, pray, and move in his name, in his “authority”. This is what Paul is referring to when he calls us ambassadors. Ambassadors have to right and privilege and responsibility to speak on behalf of the one whom they represent.

So we pray in Jesus’ name, Jesus’ authority. We bless our food in Jesus’ name, in his authority. This is not something trite that we do, it actually means something to bless our food in Jesus’ name, or to pray in his name. And we are instructed to heal in his authority.

The question isn’t whether or not we are endowed with his authority. The question is whether we believe it. Mark 16:17 might be better translated, “These signs will accompany those who believe in My name: they will...” (notice the placement of the colon, versus modern translations). Many times we “believe”, but how often do we expressly believe in his authority?

Peter Said So Himself
In Acts 3, when God used Peter to heal the lame man, Peter declared that the man was healed “on the basis of faith in His name” and the “name of Jesus has strengthened this man”. Peter not only saw the connection between Christ’s authority, but he believed in Christ’s authority in him. He said, “What I have, I give to you.” Then he said the man was made well on the basis of faith in Jesus’ name, Jesus’ authority. Peter believed in Christ’s authority; he believed in his name.

Present Day Examples
After talking about this one Sunday morning, I encouraged people to test this out in their homes. One family in our church have a son who ended up with a spot on his lung that showed up on an X-Ray. They prayed for him in the authority of Jesus. When they went later that week for another X-Ray, the spot had disappeared.

Another example was at a prayer meeting where there was a woman who suffered with chronic back pain for years. A friend and prayed for her, and after waiting and listening to the Lord, we prayed for her back in the authority of Jesus. That night at 10:30, she called me and told me that the pain was completely gone.

We are Commanded to Believe in His Name
“This is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ...” 1 John 3:23a.

The centurion believed in the authority of Christ to heal. And Jesus remarked that he had not seen such great faith in all of Israel. This is perhaps some of the greatest faith we could walk in.

We are not instructed to believe that if we have enough faith, someone will be healed. This is presumption. We are not instructed to pray, “Lord, if it is your will” – we are to prove what his will is (Romans 12:2, Colossians 1:9, 1 John 5:14,15). We are not instructed to believe in healing.

We are commanded to walk in his authority, to believe in his authority, and to pray in his authority. Are you convinced that Christ’s authority resides in you?

If you would like to read four more testimonies from people in our church, click on this link: Four Testimonies of Healing

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The Day of Atonement

2009-04-12T07:38:00.001-04:00

by George Otis Jr.

It was typical of many families in [ancient Israel], in lieu of dogs and cats, to keep other animals, particularly lambs, as pets. As in our society the young children would grow very attached to these lambs.

One evening as you and your brothers and sisters are running around outside your house, your father arrives to put a halt to the horseplay. After hustling you in for dinner, he snatches your favorite lamb up into his arms and ties it inside the door. On most days Dad’s arrival is a highlight, but today something must have gone wrong. He’s too serious tonight, not like usual when he throws you up on his shoulders and carries you through the door. Tomorrow, you discover, the family is going to the Temple; but what’s really great is that lamb gets to go, too!

Early the next morning your mother wakes you up, ordering you to clean up and put on your best clothes. The fact breakfast was skipped this morning for the Lord wasn’t new, but Dad has never looked so serious . . . so sober. Anyway, your guess is that he’s tying the lamb’s feet together so he won’t get loose in the Temple.

The family is finally on the way; Dad’s in front, with the lamb on his shoulders with Mom and all the siblings in tow. Nearing the Temple you notice some of your friends arriving but Dad won’t let you talk to anybody. Once inside the Temple, all you can see are the backs and legs of a forest of grownups. Nobody’s talking; they’re all just kind of crying and moaning real loud. Every so often a family or group of people press their way through the crowd heading for the door of the Temple. They’re always crying the hardest even the kids. It’s hard to figure out what’s happening. You had never really noticed the people’s faces the other times. This was the first time, too, that Dad had ever let lamb come, even though lot’s of other people brought theirs.

After a very long two hours you have crept near the front. Occasionally you can see the priests’ legs and bare feet around the altar through a crack in the crowd. The wailing and moaning near the front is almost deafening.

Finally, your family is standing in front of the altar. There is blood all over the ground and splattered on the priests’ clothes. While your attention is fixed on all the blood, Dad has handed the lamb over to a priest. After saying something to Dad he lifts his head and speaks again probably praying. His hands are both resting on the lamb when you notice for the first time the menacing, long knife on the side of the altar.

The lamb anticipates its future with a meek struggle but the leather cords hold firm. After the priest finishes praying he picks up the knife and puts his hand under the lamb’s jaw pulling its head back. Horror-struck, you watch the priest plunge the knife into its throat; the blood spills out onto the breast of the lamb, the priest and the altar. After one last spasmodic convulsion the life of your lamb is over.

As the priest spreads the blood around, the reality of the whole gruesome spectacle begins to melt your frozen stupor. Leaving the temple tears flow uncontrollably as you press through other Jewish families awaiting their turn. Nothing was said on the way home but no one noticed anyway.

That evening Father lifted your little frame off your tear-stained pillow and gently explained as he had to your older brothers and sisters in prior years. Explaining how a lamb could die instead of you.

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I Bleeb I'b Eeled (Part 2)

2009-03-17T18:05:00.002-04:00

Some Christians believe God doesn’t heal today like he did in the first century church. On the other hand, many believe that God is a healing God, that he is the same yesterday, today and forever, and that includes the arena of healing. But these often have difficulty finding congruency between what is believed and what is experienced. And some of these feel compelled to say, “I believe I’m healed” though every visible sign suggests otherwise.

Cessationism
I am not a cessationist. And my belief that God heals today isn’t first based on experience (mine or others), rather it is based on my understanding of Scripture. If I could find a Biblical basis for believing that supernatural works ceased with the early church, then I’d become a cessationist. However, I’ve read the Bible many times, and have found no basis to support this view.

Well Intended Cliches
What do “non-cessationists” say when someone isn’t healed? “They didn’t have enough faith.” “It must not be God’s will.” “God is trying to produce a greater good than what the actual healing would have produced.”

These well intended responses do little to glorify God, and often bring more internal struggle than anything else: guilt about not having more faith, frustration with God not wanting them to be healed, or confusion about what God is trying to teach them.

What is God Saying?
The above responses may at times be true. But until we seek the Lord, and find out what he has to say about the problem, we are just stabbing in the dark with trite answers. And well meant cliches are complicating the issue. (Almost reminds me of Job’s ‘comforters’.)

If you are unsure about whether God speaks to us today, I’ll just throw out a couple of passages: “My sheep hear My voice” (John 10) and “If anyone lacks wisdom, let him ask of God who gives generously... and it will be given to him” (James 1). Jerry Lamey points out that many people who deny that God speaks to us today, will readily admit that the Devil puts thoughts in our heads. Let’s not doubt any longer that the Lord speaks today.

And if it was his will to heal the majority of the people in Jesus’ ministry, and in the apostles’ ministry, maybe there are some extenuating circumstances as to why we don’t see him healing more people today. We ought to find out what he has to say about the present situation we are praying about. We might find more success in praying for those with physical afflictions.

James’ Simple Advice (which so few of us heed)
One thing God has already spoken about healing is in the book of James, but so few of us seem to believe. James writes:

“Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” James 5:14-16

A Real Life Example
A friend of mine who suffered from chronic pain for probably more than a decade refused to call the elders of our church to pray for her, simply because she didn’t what to be a burden. So she suffered alone. However, after a surgical procedure that didn’t resolve one of her physical problems completely, she finally asked us to drive to her house one Sunday after church and pray for her. And of course, we did – gladly.

Two days later her testimony went beyond help with the surgical procedure. She moved an inch toward God, and he moved a mile. That day, God delivered her from pain all throughout her entire body.

This was about two years ago. This week I asked her again (as I sometimes do) how she was doing in the area of pain, and she said she was pain-free.

There are many people in our church that will tell you how God has met them, and brought help and healing, after simply calling on the elders of the church for prayer. As elders, we would first listen to what God was saying about the situation, and then we would pray accordingly. And as a result, many times people are healed.

Coming Up Next
In "I Bleeb I'b Eeled (Part 3)" I plan to discuss the connection between authority in Christ and healing.

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Thoughts from My Home Schooled Son

2009-02-06T09:03:00.016-05:00

Average Home School Day

Get up, start workin', no fun or play,
Looks like this will be the average school day

Sit down at my desk, grab paper and pencil
And seizing my brain, a useful utensil

Working for hours that feel like years
I wish that Saturday soon would be here

Finally finishing, I feel so free,
But I was mistaken, my mom calls me

Now here I'm sitting, feeling no glee,
Lo and behold, I'm folding laundry!

Benjamin Southwick
Age 12, 6th Grade

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I Bleeb I'b Eeled (Part 1)

2009-01-22T07:43:00.019-05:00

You might hear someone with a cold (and perhaps a misunderstanding of Biblical faith and healing) say "I bleeb I'b eeled".

Obviously, scripture proclaims God is a healing God, he desires to heal people, and that Christians can be used by God to bring physical healing to people. Jesus said, "He who believes in me, the works that I do, he shall do also, and greater works than these shall he do" (John 14). But why don't we see more of this today?

Scripture Trumps Experience
One problem we encounter is the difficulty squaring our experiences with scripture. It is difficult to believe that God wants to heal more often than not, because we haven't often seen healings. The fact is that many times we pray for healing and see no results. Thus we reinterpret scripture to match our experiences. And we default to such prayers as, "If it is your will, heal so and so."

Jesus demonstrated God's will in sickness and healing. Paul says that we are to "prove what the will of God is", not guess what it is. Can we truly pray the prayer of faith if we don't know God's will?

One Important Principle For Healing
Learning about healing has been a quest of mine for a long time. I'm endeavoring to conform my experience to scripture (not the other way around). One thing I've learned is the importance of gaining God's perspective on the immediate situation.

There are many causes for physical symptoms and sicknesses. These can be physical, emotional, spiritual, etc. or a combination. But if we merely approach a sickness from a physical standpoint, we may miss the boat, and suffer needlessly in the long run.

God knows the root causes of our ailments, and he can make them clear. Without seeking him, we end up stabbing at solutions. We try to pray harder. Our doctors experiment with treatments. Sometimes God says, "Go to the doctor". But not always.

Deliverance by Man
Here's an example. At least three people I know of have been treated for melanoma. Knowing the danger of this disease and observing for several years a small abnormal spot on my skin, I began to seek God about going to the doctor. Now I never had it diagnosed, but I do know that it was not clearing up, and if anything, it was slowly getting worse. God spoke to me this passage:

Oh give us help against the adversary, For deliverance by man is in vain. Psalms 108:12

So I have believed God, and have trusted in his specific word to me for this situation. After a couple of months, the spot cleared up over half-way. A year later almost all the discoloration is gone.

Pink Eye Hit Home
One more example that occurred in my family is when conjunctivitis took its turn with three of my boys. The first two battled recurring fevers and red, gooping eyes. When prayer did not help them, we took them to the emergency room (of course this happened on the weekend!) and obtained antibiotics for them. Then the third boy came down with the fever and the seeping, red eyes.

I was frustrated. But after God adjusted my attitude, I heard the Holy Spirit clearly say to anoint him with oil (James 5), and I was reminded of Jesus' words about agreement (Matthew 18). So my wife and I anointed him and agreed together in prayer for him to be healed. The following morning the fever was gone, and the eyes had significantly cleared. That night we did the same thing, and the next morning he was completely healed. (Incidentally, it took around four or five days for the other two's symptoms to clear up.)

Jesus is More Accessible than Your Doctor
So why not give Jesus a chance to speak to us about our physical symptoms? We may just need to seek medical help. But maybe God will point us in another direction. He certainly desires to heal us. And we don't need to set up an appointment with him.

"Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers" (3 John 1:2).

Please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

Great Song from Deluge

2009-01-15T17:17:00.014-05:00

"Open up the Sky" is a great song from the band Deluge. It's been around for almost a year and currently can be downloaded for free at the link at the end of this post.

Open Up the Sky
by John Stockstill
(c) 2008 Integrity's Praise! Music

Our beloved Father please come down and meet us
We are waiting on Your touch
Open up the heavens shower down Your presence
We respond to Your great love

We won’t be satisfied with anything ordinary
We won’t be satisfied at all

Open up the sky fall down like rain
We don’t want blessings we want You
Open up the sky fall down like fire
We don’t want anything but You

Our beloved Jesus we just want to see You
In the glory of Your light
Earthly things don’t matter they just fade and shatter
When we’re touched by love divine

Here we go let’s go to the throne
The place that we belong
Right into His arms

If you would like the chords for this song, click here. Click this link to play (or right click to download) the free mp3 of this song: http://www.verticalmusic.com/audio/06%20Open%20Up%20The%20Sky.mp3

Please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

Ravi Demonstrates Unscientific Science

2009-01-14T17:55:00.000-05:00

Original source: http://www.thetruthproject.org/about/culturefocus/A000000211.cfm

Please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

Have a Seat

2009-01-06T14:18:00.005-05:00

Paul wrote that Christ, after rising from the dead, has been seated at God's right hand in the heavenly places, "far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And He put all things in subjection under His feet" (Ephesians 1:21,22).

This is nothing especially new, but it is awesome to think that Christ is not barely above every rule, authority, power and dominion. But he is far above them.

They can't touch him.

But I think there is something even more remarkable here that may go unnoticed.

In the next section of his letter, Paul writes that God has "seated us with him in the heavenly places." To me this has significant implications, if we choose to believe what he says. If we are seated with Christ in the heavenly places, then we are far above every power and dominion of hell.

They can't touch us unless we concede to them.

Will circumstance and trouble, difficulty and trial bring us down from our seat in the heavenly places, down to the realm of Satan's bullying? Or through faith will we take our seat with Christ in the heavenly places, "far above all rule and authority and power and dominion"?

Please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

Crossing Heaven's Threshold

2008-12-23T08:09:00.000-05:00

Christmas is a time of celebrating a simple fact: God crossed heaven's threshold to 'incarnate' himself to the world to rescue it. Have we learned from his example?

In the previous post I referenced Jesus' words to us that we, his church, are the light of the world. (Individuals are not that light!) But he said, does anyone put a light under a basket? Or do they put it out in the open for everyone to see and receive light?

It seems to me that in many ways, we have hidden our light under the basket of the church building. We have expected to reach people by attracting them to church programs. But how many unchurched people do you know who really care about church programs? They have other real and/or felt needs.

Shouldn't we, the church, get the light out of the building and out to the world? Shouldn't the church should be impacting all levels of society and culture as salt, and bringing light and life to all people in need?

As one person said, we should start fishing on the other side of the boat. And another, "Bait the hook with what the fish like, not what the fisherman likes."

Jesus crossed heaven's threshold to 'incarnate' himself to the world. His church, I believe, should cross the building's threshold to 'incarnate' herself to the world.

Please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

You are Not the Salt of the Earth

2008-12-22T16:50:00.004-05:00

Last month I was struck with the realization that I am not the salt of the earth, and I am not the light of the world. Probably many of us who grew up in Sunday School had learned that we are the salt and we are the light. I have recently had to 'unlearn' this.

If we could read the Greek, we would realize that Jesus said "You (plural) are the salt, and you (plural) are the light." In fact, he followed up with, "A city set on a hill cannot be hidden." I've begun to wonder if so many of our attempts to bring hope and light to the world have been feeble because we have tried to do it on our own.

Yes, we have measured impact through individual effort. But our impact could be exponentially increased through synergism, two or more working together. Synergy comes from "syn" meaning "together", and "ergo" meaning "to work".

Jesus then said, "Let your (plural) light (singular) shine in such a way that men may see your (plural) good works ("ergov"), and give glory to your Father in heaven." Yep, it's an 'us' thing, and it looks like there is a considerable amount of work to be done.

We won't get much done working alone.

Please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

For All You Bloggers Out There

2008-12-16T11:14:00.003-05:00

Another great poster from Despair.com

Blogging
Never before have so many people with so little to say said so much to so few.

Please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

God is Amazing

2008-12-16T08:08:00.012-05:00

I am constantly amazed at God's creativity. You may have already seen some of these pictures that have hit the news in the past week of the new species discovered in the Mekong Valley, but here is a cool slide show some videos and photos.

If this video no longer works, try this link. (The flash will take a few minutes to load.)

Please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

Walking in Someone's Shadow

2008-12-04T06:55:00.005-05:00

For most people, the idea of walking in someone else's shadow is not anything to be desired. Some people have walked in the shadow of an older sibling, and may seem to have never measured up to their achievements. Some walk in the shadow of others more skilled, talented, or qualified -- and they never seem to catch a break in life.

Psalm 91, however, suggests that it is an advantage to walk in the shadow of God. The first verse says that whoever "dwells in the secret place of the Most High, will abide in the shadow of the Almighty." The cool thing about walking in His shadow is there are all kinds of benefits: security, safety, health, etc. And when we walk in His shadow, then it really doesn't matter that people are noticing Him instead of us.

Please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

The Average Life of a Super Hero

2008-11-24T13:41:00.018-05:00

There was once a SUPER-Super Hero. He created millions of Super Heroes. Not just a few, but millions. He created Superman, Wonderwoman, Flash, Captain America, The Incredibles, Batman, Spiderman, the Invisible Woman, the Bionic Man, the Bionic Woman, the Hulk, Elastic Man, Ironman, Hancock, etc.

Why did this Super-super hero create all these millions of super heroes? Because he saw the human race needed help, needed saving. So he sent these super heroes to the earth to help mankind.

But, as time went by, these super heroes one by one got distracted...

They integrated with "normal" life and the challenges of daily living. They had new relationships to deal with, issues with their children, problems with their jobs and careers. Occasionally they would do something significant to help people out. But they learned to give scientific explanations for their supernatural actions.

Eventually, they forgot altogether their power and their purpose.

The idea for this allegory came from Jesus' words in John 14:12-14. What do you think it means?

Please post any comments you might have below.

Or click here to listen to the message about this allegory shared at Titusville Branch Fellowship on Sunday, November 23, 2008.

A Ridiculous Judge?

2008-11-18T10:19:00.012-05:00

There was once a judge, who after simply hearing the prosecution's side of a case would render his verdict.

Sound ridiculous?

This isn't as uncommon as you think. This is a metaphor. And the judge represents people like you and me.

Many times in my life, people have rendered a verdict against me, because of something they've heard from someone else... without getting the full story. Can you relate?

I'm beginning to wonder how many times I've done a very similar thing in my own mind - rendering an opinion about someone before I've even had a chance to hear their viewpoint.

Years ago when I led summer missions trips for youth, I remember being involved in a number of conflicts between participants. After initially hearing about a problem, it would seem so clear what had gone on, and what I needed to do about it... until I heard the other side of the story.

It's bad enough to form an opinion about someone based simply on the "prosecution". What's worse -- and more painful -- is when we broadcast that opinion to others. In this sense we are not the judge who renders a verdict prematurely.

Instead we are the reporter who hears one side of the case, and then goes to print with a story.

Please post a comment below with your thoughts.

Peace and Joy

2008-11-03T16:30:00.019-05:00

The Christmas season is soon upon us. Soon there will be well-wishes of peace, joy and similar greetings.

Peace and Joy. A nice greeting, but what does it really mean? What does it really take to have peace and joy?

Peace
Many people think of 'world peace'. Who doesn't want that? But isn't world peace wishful thinking, especially when many of us can't even attain perpetual peace on a personal level? It seems there are always an abundance of relational conflicts. There are also those internal, nagging conflicts that are ever-present. Is it ever possible to arrive at peace (at least internally)?

Joy
Joy might seem like a far away, abstract idea, too. We're more familiar with desiring happiness than joy. And most of the things we pursue bring only short-lived happinesses. I wonder if a better description of joy is, not an excited feeling, but a state of constant contentment, regardless of the ups and downs of life.

Why do Peace and Joy Elude Us?
Perhaps something Paul wrote may give us some insight. He said the kingdom of God is "righteousness, peace and joy." Could it be that these are intricately related to one another? Maybe righteousness is a precursor to peace. And maybe peace is a precursor to joy. We often see these as separate qualities. Perhaps Paul is saying that they go hand-in-hand.

Righteousness simply means to be walking rightly with God and others (at least as it depends on us). Do we try to experience peace without being in proper relationship with God or others? Jesus promises peace, not as the world gives -- temporary, shallow -- but real peace that goes beyond understanding and circumstance. However, it doesn't come separate from living rightly with God and our fellow man.

Lasting happiness or joy, then, is a byproduct of peace, but it is indirectly connected back to being right before God and our neighbor.

Are you struggling with a lack of peace in your life? A lack of joy? Consider that any breach on your part in relationships could be a factor. Jesus wants you to live life to the full. Fullness of peace, fullness of joy. Righteousness is the doorway to a life of peace and joy.

Please post a comment below with your thoughts.

Excellent Free Bible Software

2008-10-27T13:07:00.003-04:00

Probably ten years ago some friends of mine from the local university told me about E-Sword. Since then, I have been using this free study software that minimally comes with King James Version, and Strong's Greek and Hebrew definitions.

But more than that, one can add on all sorts of modules to enhance E-Sword. I have downloaded commentaries like Barnes, Clarke, Gill; additional versions like ASV, NASB (this cost $20 to activate), ESV, GNB, the Message, the Septuagint, the Bible in Spanish, YLT, etc. I have added Thayer's Lexicon, an in-depth Hebrew Lexicon, Webster's 1828 dictionary, different Bible encyclopedias, a cross-referencing module called Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. Additionally, I have added volumes like The Ante-Nicene Fathers, Schaff's History of the Church, Foxe's Book of Martyrs, Finney's Systematic Theology, Eddersheim's Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, and works from Josephus. Finally, there are different map modules you can add on as well.

Also, you can create your own study notes, do exhaustive and comprehensive word/phrase searches, and even search by Strong's numbers.

Let me know if you've tried this software, and if it is a help to you.

Paying too Much for an Office Suite?

2008-10-25T12:43:00.008-04:00

If you are tired of paying for Microsoft Office updates (or even Corel Office) you need to check out this free, open source office suite: OpenOffice.org. It includes word processor, spreadsheet, presentations, database, and drawing.

I first heard about OpenOffice four years ago while the project still had some bugs. But since then the software has come a long way. Recently, I have preferred its presentation software to Corel's Presentations and I even use it when I teach. Open Office can save/load multiple file types such as Word, Word Perfect and their corresponding office software components.

Over the past year our family has experimented with it on our Mac, too. Yesterday I downloaded the OpenOffice.org 3.0 for Mac which now does not need to run X11. It appears to be a much better package than previous versions.

If you have tried this software, please leave a comment below sharing your experience.

Where is Your Faith?

2008-10-21T12:37:00.012-04:00

Adapted from the message given at Titusville Branch on October 12, 2008.

In Luke 18:8, Jesus finishes his parable about the unjust judge with a seemingly disconnected question: "When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" For some reason Jesus is so concerned about us having faith. Faith is needed for being made righteous before God (Romans 3). Faith is needed for pleasing God (Hebrews 11).

When Eve was being deceived by the serpent, his line of questioning was meant to cause doubt about God. To cause unbelief. "God is holding out on you, God is not good, he can’t be trusted, you’ve got to get what’s yours." Notice there wasn't really a change in the amount of faith that Eve had. Instead, the faith she had was redirected -- towards herself. She now believed that she was the only one able to obtain for herself what she thought she needed. This was a shifting of faith.

Also, when God's word speaks of justifying faith, it is talking of faith toward God (1 Thess. 1:8, Heb. 6:1). Jesus, in confronting the disciples during the storm says, "Where is your faith?" (Luke 8:25). We always have faith. And faith always has an object. Faith in God, faith in ourselves, faith in money, faith in doctors, etc. "God has given to each a measure of faith" (Romans 12).

Increase our Faith!
This sounds like a noble request that the disciples asked of Jesus in Luke 17. But Jesus' response may have been more a rebuke than a teaching. He said, "If you had faith like a mustard seed..." It seems that what Jesus was saying to them was, "You don't need an increase in faith, you need to redirect it. If your faith in me was the size of a mustard seed, there would be nothing impossible for you." Remember when he said, "Nothing shall be impossible for him who believes"? Again, the implied object of this belief is in Jesus and what he has said.

The True Nature of Unbelief
Recently I was struck with an unpleasant revelation about unbelief: "Unbelief assaults the character of God." In Eve's temptation, Satan was attacking the character of God. And unbelief in us does the same thing. It says to God, "You are not who you say you are." Some of us are so distracted by our failures, weaknesses, and inabilities that this unbelief in ourselves puts up a roadblock in the road of faith toward God. Our inabilities weigh more heavily in the scales than his ability. Whatever happened the the profession, "I can do all things through him who strengthens me"?

"Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God" (Heb. 3:12). Again, unbelief's cross-hairs are aimed at the character of God. Unbelief denies who he says he is, and what he says he will do. Unbelief causes distance between us and God, because our position with God is relational. Salvation isn’t merely a spiritual state, but a relational state. Faith is necessary in any healthy relationship. It seems like this is why faith would so please God; why Abraham would believe God, and God would reckon this simple faith as righteousness.

Is your belief in God greater than your belief in yourself? Is your belief in God greater than your unbelief in yourself?

Please leave your feedback by posting a comment below.

Steps Toward Deception

2008-10-16T08:11:00.007-04:00

How do people become deceived?

I was a little surprised earlier this year, while listening to Winkie Pratney's 21CR (21st Century Reformation) podcast, when he said that deception doesn't begin with believing a lie. In fact, according to his teaching on the "I Wills" of Satan in Isaiah 14, he said that intellectual deception was the fourth phase of this process.

So what does Pratney say is the process toward deception? Here is a summary list (you can get the complete notes of the 21CR Seminar here):

Independent Spirit
Selfish Choices
Searing Your Conscience
Intellectual Deception

You can also subscribe to the 21CR Podcast here.

My dad used to ask this question: "Do you want something bad enough, you'll deceive yourself to get it?"

Please feel free to share your thoughts on deception by posting a comment below.

Free Photo & Imaging Software

2008-10-14T21:27:00.006-04:00

I've been using a great free image and photo editing program for more than a year called Paint.Net. I like it better than my version of Corel Photo Paint. The downside is it only runs on Windows.

For Mac users wanting a quality free (open source) paint program, try Gimp. Gimp runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux. I only run it on my Mac, but on Windows I use Paint.Net simply because it has a more user-friendly interface. Both Paint.Net and Gimp offer more features than the editing software that typically come with digital cameras or printers.

So if you want to broaden your image/photo editing options without paying a hefty price, give one of these a try.

If you've used any free or open source paint programs, please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

Don't Beat Yourself Up

2008-10-10T10:50:00.009-04:00

This post is a summary of the message shared at Titusville Branch on October 5, 2008.

Many Christians do not agree with a once common practice in the church: self-flagellation. Throughout Christian history there have been ascetics who promoted severe self-discipline and denial of many sensory pleasures. The term “mortification of the flesh” came from scriptures like, “...those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Galatians 5:24, cf. Romans 8:13 and Colossians 3:5). This idea and these scriptures were used as a basis for things like self-whipping, extreme fasting, wearing hairshirts, etc.

From the Past to the Present
The following comes from Wikipedia’s article on “mortification of the flesh”:

Dominic Loricatus is said to have performed 'One Hundred Years Penance' by chanting 20 psalters accompanied by 300,000 lashes over six days.
Francis of Assisi, is said to have asked pardon to his body for the severe self-afflicted penances he has done: vigils, fasts, frequent flagellations and the use of a hairshirt.
Catherine of Siena wore sackcloth and scourged herself three times daily in imitation of Dominic.
At the latter half of the twentieth century, Josemaría Escrivá practiced self-flagellation and used the cilice, a modern-day version of the hairshirt.
Pio of Pietrelcina, wrote in one of his letters: “Let us now consider what we must do to ensure that the Holy Spirit may dwell in our souls. It can all be summed up in mortification of the flesh with its vices and concupiscences, and in guarding against a selfish spirit... The mortification must be constant and steady, not intermittent, and it must last for one's whole life. Moreover, the perfect Christian must not be satisfied with a kind of mortification which merely appears to be severe. He must make sure that it hurts.”
Pope John XXIII wrote: “But the faithful must also be encouraged to do outward acts of penance, both to keep their bodies under the strict control of reason and faith, and to make amends for their own and other people's sins... St. Augustine issued the same insistent warning: ‘It is not enough for a man to change his ways for the better and to give up the practice of evil, unless by painful penance, sorrowing humility, the sacrifice of a contrite heart and the giving of alms he makes amends to God for all that he has done wrong.’ ...But besides bearing in a Christian spirit the inescapable annoyances and sufferings of this life, the faithful ought also take the initiative in doing voluntary acts of penance and offering them to God.... Since, therefore, Christ has suffered in the flesh, ‘it is only fitting’ that we be ‘armed with the same intent.’ It is right, too, to seek example and inspiration from the great saints of the Church. Pure as they were, they inflicted such mortifications upon themselves as to leave us almost aghast with admiration. And as we contemplate their saintly heroism, shall not we be moved by God's grace to impose on ourselves some voluntary sufferings and deprivations, we whose consciences are perhaps weighed down by so heavy a burden of guilt?"

Back in 1990 my wife and I visited the Basilica of Guadalupe in Mexico City. Leading up to this large church is a two-mile walkway called ‘Calzada de Guadalupe.’ Every year penitent people crawl on their knees the entire length to plead for mercy and miracles.

No Value Against the Flesh
It is true that Jesus said, “If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” However, Paul writes in Colossians 2:23 that these types of activities have “the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence.” They only have the appearance, the facade, of wisdom. They come from self-made religion. And they have no value against fleshly indulgence.

True, we are not to live according to the flesh, we are to deny ourselves, and we are not to indulge fleshly desires. However, Romans 8:13 makes it clear one way we are to put to death the deeds of the body. Paul says here that “if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” Denying ourselves isn’t something we do for the purpose of “self-abasement and severe treatment of the body.” It is more a matter of obedience – obedience to the Spirit. The Holy Spirit may lead us to fast or to deny ourselves some pleasure. But asceticism only has the “appearance of wisdom in self-made religion” and has “no value against fleshly indulgence.”

Few People Practice this Today
I have never met any Christian that actually practices any type of strict asceticism or mortification of the flesh. Many baulk at such a thought. What I find interesting, however, is that there are many of us who practice a type of internal self-flagellation.

Sometimes we cannot get over ourselves when we fail, when we sin, when we make a mistake. We often have to brutally beat ourselves mentally before we can accept the Father’s forgiveness. We berate ourselves with verbal thoughts like: “You idiot. You’re such a loser. You’re such a failure.” And we can’t walk through the corridor of Christ’s mercy until a substantial time of self-flagellation has passed.

This, too, has no value against the flesh. This type of response doesn’t enable us to overcome.

Not only is this a type of false humility, this strips faith from us. Lack of faith hinders God’s work in our lives. Lack of faith displeases Him (Hebrews 10:38, 11:6). And lack of faith prohibits righteous living. Romans 3 says that faith is the very thing needed to be made right with God. Faith, not a self-whipping.

Do we place more confidence in beating ourselves, or in the atoning work of Jesus? Can he justify us without the help of our self-flagellation? I would submit that he cannot justify us when we beat ourselves up because we are placing our confidence in ourselves, in the flesh, rather than in his sacrifice for us.

How Long Does it Take to be Right with God?
How much time does it take to become right again with God when we’ve sinned? How long does it take to trust Jesus for his available mercy and forgiveness? Does it take hours or days of self-punishment? Or do we really have faith in Christ’s work? We can be right with God a split second after failing, if we only believe (see 1 John 1:9-2:2). Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness. Paul says that he did not have “a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith” (Philippians 3:9). How long does it take to believe?

Faith to Overcome
It takes more faith to get up and go on, than to beat ourselves up for how we have failed. (It takes more humility, too.) And faith is the only thing that enables us to overcome.

“... my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him. But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.”
Hebrews 10:38-39

Please share your thoughts by posting a comment below.

Great Free Internet Filtering Software

2008-10-09T10:52:00.006-04:00

Over the past six years my kids have been using the computers and the internet for a substantial part of their school work. As a result I've done a little research on internet filters. Last year I came across a great free internet filter for home use.

I have used K9 Web Protection from Blue Coat for months now. With it I can customize which categories and sites are or are not available for my home computers. I can block key words, set time restrictions for internet use, and log web site activity. The latest beta version can also block tunneling sites (sites that run underneath the radar of many internet filters).

Here are some helpful links:
K9 Web Protection Home Page
Get K9 Now Page

If you use any filtering software, please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

A 'Tail' of Two Dogs

2008-10-07T15:38:00.002-04:00

Have you ever heard any variation of the illustration below?

Imagine you have two dogs living inside you. The name of one is Flesh and the name of the other is Spirit. These dogs keep getting into fights with each other. Which dog is gonna win? The strongest one, of course: the one that’s been fed right, exercised, and taken care of. Well, then, which dog are you taking the best care of? Do you “feed” your spirit with Scripture, prayer, preaching, uplifting music? Or are you feeding your flesh with inappropriate TV shows, movies, foul language and jokes (saying them OR listening to them), music that has questionable lyrics?

Okay, this illustration may have some good points. But I see some inherent flaws. This story seems to leave the following impression: “so as long as I feed Spirit more, then it’s okay. I can still feed Flesh, but if I do more ‘Spirit’ things, it will be stronger than Flesh.”

Paul says, however, “the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God.” He also says “that those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh.” It sounds like we are supposed to kill one of the dogs.

Paul is a Hard One to Follow
Why is this story so popular? I believe it comes from a misunderstanding of something Paul wrote. In fact, Peter talks about how some of Paul’s writings are difficult to understand, which some people actually distort (see 2 Peter 3:16,17). This distortion may be unintentional. But it may exist because we have a tendency to interpret scripture through personal experience.

Many people have taught that Paul experienced the same ‘dog fight’ described above because of his words in Romans 7:14-25. He says things like:

For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. (v. 18)
Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. (v. 20)
For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. (vs. 22,23)
So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin. (v.25)

Seems like that explains itself, right?

There's More to the Story
Well, actually, Paul didn’t stop there at the end of chapter 7. In fact Paul didn’t divide up his writings into chapters and verses. Chapter 8 continues his thought.

One other important distinction here is the change in tenses that Paul uses. The verses leading up to verse 14 are past tense. Then in Romans 8:2, he switches back to the past tense. Romans 7:14 to Romans 8:1 are an illustration that Paul is using to make his point which he brings to a crescendo in Romans 8:2-4.

If we stop at the end of chapter 7, we would be left with the impression that there are two laws, the law of sin and death and the law of God. We would be left with the impression that the Christian is to left serving the law of God with his mind, and the law of sin with his flesh or body. But Romans 8:2 says unequivocally that this is not the case.

Why is There No Condemnation?
The reason there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus is because God introduced a NEW law. Paul concludes that “the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.” This law of the Spirit is the new law. Paul goes on to say that “the requirement of the law of God” can be “fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.” We don’t hear Christians talk like that today.

If we are not fulfilling the requirement of the law of God, it’s not because of two dogs fighting inside us. It’s because we haven’t killed one of the dogs.

Jesus Agrees with Paul
Jesus actually affirmed that two dogs cannot live inside us when he said, “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other” (Matthew 6:24a).

If we are having major struggles with the flesh, perhaps it because the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has NOT set us free from the law of sin and death. Remember these other words of Jesus, “So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36).

With the weight of other scriptures against it, I am led to the conclusion that the story of two dogs (named Flesh and Spirit) is actually a tall tale.

Please share your thoughts by posting a comment below.

A Modern Day Parable

2008-10-01T09:58:00.003-04:00

The four CH-47 helicopters arrived through smoke and fire at the embassy in the capital of this foreign nation. Their mission? To rescue people trapped inside by insurgents’ gunfire and grenades. There were 87 people in the embassy, hanging on for dear life, hoping their own military would arrive before the nationals broke in.

The dissidents had already been pushed back by several AH-64 Apaches that flew by minutes earlier. Now troops were descending from the helicopters to the rooftop of the embassy. They entered the building, hurrying to the rooms where people were gathered.

Fifteen minutes later, the helicopters were lifting their quarry away to flight altitude. Twenty-five minutes later, the nationals broke into the embassy and torched it to the ground. Forty minutes after that, the helicopters landed at their military base nearby, celebrating what they considered a successful mission.

In the next hour, the nations around the globe grumbled at this superpower’s actions. In fact, the UN Secretary-General issued a statement denouncing the mission.

Nobody was condoning the terrorists who attacked the embassy, however. What the world found appalling was that the special forces had rescued less than half of the people in the building. Why, with four Chinooks, each with more than a 30 passenger capacity, did they only rescue 42 people? The nationals had been temporarily pushed back, so the soldiers had plenty of time to save all who were trapped inside.

This was no great rescue. The military had no right to celebrate. Forty-five people had died needlessly that day. And this superpower could have saved them without much effort. But for some strange reason it didn’t.

What is the purpose of this story?

For some, this parable could have begun with the words, “The kingdom of heaven is like...”

According to some traditions, God, the superpower of the universe, is said to demonstrate his glorious mercy by choosing a select group of people to be saved, while leaving countless billions to face the judgment of the lake of fire. Additionally, no one is able to respond favorably to God's grace without him giving them the gift of faith and repentance.

If this view is an accurate portrayal of scripture, then (to me, anyway) it begs a very important question. Why doesn't the infinitely powerful and the infinitely merciful God change everyone's heart and save everyone?

Finally, some theological views might add another element to this parable: that the superpower planned the assault on its own embassy, in order to show how great of a superpower it really was.

Hmmm... I just can't see how this view demonstrates a loving, merciful and just God as the Bible declares him to be.

"...but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight," declares the LORD (Jer 9:24).

Please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

Whose Word Matters?

2008-09-30T15:32:00.009-04:00

Adapted from the message given Sunday, September 21, 2008 at Titusville Branch Fellowship.

“If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple” Luke 14:26.

Most would agree that Jesus' words here are telling us that our parents, spouses, siblings and children should not take first place in our hearts and lives. He alone should be first.

I would like to suggest another application of this verse: Sometimes what these people have said to us carries more weight than what Jesus says. Their view of us is more important to us than his view of us. What they think about us rises to a place of supremacy over what he thinks about us. And this usually happens subconsciously.

Walking Wounded
There are wounds in many of our hearts from the past, wounds caused by people most important to us. Real, serious, deep, and untouchable wounds. Intentionally or not, they have been inflicted through words or actions that have berated us. Worst of all, many of us have fallen in line and turned on ourselves, believing a lie that we are worthless.

We protect these hurts by building walls around them: sanctuaries to their existence. We instinctively create these defensive mechanisms to keep people from hurting us again. In the process, we distance Jesus from these untouchable areas. He wants to bring healing and life. But holding onto the pain of the past, we don’t allow him access to these remote places of the heart.

These hurts hinder us and hold us back. They cripple us and keep us from walking in the fullness of who Christ is in us. Instead we walk in insecurity, measuring our worth by what we think others think about us. And we don’t experience life to the full as Jesus wants to give it.

Distant Echoes of the Past
Jesus doesn’t want anyone to displace him in our hearts. But how about their words, their actions, or their views of us? Do they hold sway against Christ’s words, actions, and view? Does his word take second place to what has been spoken about us in the past? Does Christ’s death on the cross speak more to us about our worth than what others have done to us?

Of course, in theory, we would say yes. But what about when we are hard-pressed and caught off-guard? Again and again, we hear in our hearts the distant echoes of those who have betrayed our love and trust. We are boxed in and hindered because of insecurities rooted in past hurts.

A Difficult Cross
Jesus goes on to say that if we don’t carry our cross and follow him we cannot be his disciple. A disciple is one who imitates his master. Jesus was absolutely secure in the Father’s love. And he was unswayed when those closest to him abandoned him. His view of who he was in his Father’s eyes was unswerving. Are we secure in the Father’s love? Do we believe Jesus’ declaration of our worth?

Resting in his view of us can be a difficult cross to carry. Sure, we can deny ourselves in many areas. What about denying ourselves the right to believe we are worthless? We can easily see other people’s worth and yet be blind to our equality with them. When we deny our worth, what are we saying about Christ’s death on the cross for us? Are we putting other people’s words in supremacy over his?

Giving Place to Christ's Word
Can we allow Christ’s words to penetrate into these deep areas of hurt and insecurity? Can we love his words and hate all others’?

Can we grant Jesus access beyond the walls that enshrine the words and wounds of the past? After all, Jesus’ word about us and our worth is what really matters.

His isn’t just the final word, it is the only word.

Litany of Humility

2008-09-25T07:26:00.008-04:00

This prayer was shared with some of us in Branch Ministries during a Pastor's Training Course. It really drives home how humility applies in more areas of life than one might expect.

by Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val (1865-1930)

O Jesus! meek and humble of heart, Hear me.
From the desire of being esteemed,
Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being loved...
From the desire of being extolled ...
From the desire of being honored ...
From the desire of being praised ...
From the desire of being preferred to others...
From the desire of being consulted ...
From the desire of being approved ...
From the fear of being humiliated ...
From the fear of being despised...
From the fear of suffering rebukes ...
From the fear of being calumniated ...
From the fear of being forgotten ...
From the fear of being ridiculed ...
From the fear of being wronged ...
From the fear of being suspected ...

That others may be loved more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be esteemed more than I ...
That, in the opinion of the world,
others may increase and I may decrease ...
That others may be chosen and I set aside ...
That others may be praised and I unnoticed ...
That others may be preferred to me in everything...
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should…

Church Growth: What Did Jesus Do?

2008-09-23T15:04:00.005-04:00

Now That's a Crowd!
In Luke 14: 25 Jesus had huge crowds following him. Some of his crowds were between 4,000 and 20,000 total people. If only my ministry could generate such a following!

What would any of us pastors do in our day with such numbers? We would probably take up an offering. And we might even build larger buildings as monuments to the validity of our ministry.

Often, we evaluate our effectiveness in terms of numbers. A pastor recently asked me, “What do you run on a Sunday morning?” He wanted to know how many people attended our Sunday morning services. I believe I choked out a less than an agreeable response to his enquiry.

Not Your Crowd-Pleaser
Funny thing is, Jesus wasn’t impressed with numbers. When the large gathering followed him after he fed the thousands, Jesus said some pretty strange things.

This sure wasn’t a crowd-pleaser: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves” (John 6:53). In John 6:66 many of his followers stopped walking with him as a result.

I don’t get the impression that Jesus was concerned with the quantity of his followers, but the quality of his followers. He said things like, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow me,” and “whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.” (We rarely hear this message any more. It might offend some people.)

And finally, when great crowds followed him in Luke 14, he said something that was sure to send them home. “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.”

Maybe Jesus could have used some help from some of our clever, twenty-first century evangelism and church-growth techniques.

Allow Me to Indulge Myself

2008-09-23T11:18:00.000-04:00

Adapted from the message given on Sunday, September 14, 2008 at Titusville Branch Fellowship

A dictionary definition for self-indulgence begins with: "indulging one's own desires, passions, whims, etc." Obviously, many desires are not intrinsically harmful, but indulging in many desires can be damaging – physically, emotionally, socially and spiritually.

The definition adds this phrase at the end: “especially without restraint.” I would like to add the word “external” immediately before the word “restraint”. We can all exercise restraint; many times we do not want to. To the people who think they cannot control themselves, let’s just change one element of their situation. Let’s add another person. It is amazing how much control they have when another person is present.

Selfish Ambition
I was thinking about some words or phrases in Scripture that connect to self-indulgence. One of them is selfish ambition. James 3:16 says “For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.” Selfish ambition can be self-promotion, or perhaps the desire for recognition above others. No one likes to listen to people who brag. But how many times does the word “I” or “me” show up in our conversations?

Fleshly Desires
Some other phrases in Scripture relating to self-indulgence come from 1 John 2:16: the “lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.” The lust of the flesh can mean many things, but simply it means fleshly desires. Do we master our fleshly desires, or do they master us? Romans 8 says the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God and cannot please him. Cain is told in Genesis 4:7 that “sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.” Here is a fallen man, without any power of a resurrected Christ in his being, being told by God that he could and must master sin. How much more can the believer, who has Christ’s resurrection power in him, overcome sin. The Bible does not afford us much excuse here for helplessness against the flesh. Unfortunately, though, much of our present day doctrine does not allow for this type of victory.

Desires of the Eyes
The lust of the eyes, too, carries many ideas. It can merely mean the desires of the eyes. Do we care how we appear to others? Our culture leaves few of us untainted by this stain. From what we wear to what we drive to what we live in, we are often so self-conscious of how people perceive us. James Dobson says that 80% of people’s self-esteem is based on what they think others think about them. So we parade around acting confident and secure, when secretly we are aiming to look good in others’ eyes, our confidence shattered at the slightest indication of disapproval. John writes that many religious people were not confessing Jesus, “because they loved the approval of man, rather than the approval of God.”

The Pride of Life
Many of us desire position and power. Sometimes we want to be esteemed because of our place or accomplishments. Sometimes we want to keep up with (or be ahead of) the Joneses. For some reason, there is an inflated sense of security and worth that come from having what society says is significant. This shifting sand plays into the hands of corporate merchandisers, and they exploit us because of it. Greed and covetousness is so often spoken against in Scripture. Coveting is breaking one of the ten commandments. It is called idolatry in Colossians 3:5. Jesus himself says, “...be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions” (Luke 12:15).

Let Me First
We often get caught up with a more subtle type of self-indulgence. We think our time runs away from us, when in actuality we are being pulled, leash in hand, by the bulldog of our own busyness. Consequently, Christ’s kingdom comes in second place to our own kingdoms. Two would-be disciples tell Jesus in Luke 9, “let me first...” before they will follow him. Jesus says that such ones are not “fit for the kingdom of God.”

Be On Guard
Jesus warns us to be on guard against self-indulgence in Luke 21:34. Religion, however, does not provide the answer for dealing with self-indulgence. Read what Paul says in Colossians 2:20-23:

If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as, "Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!" (which all refer to things destined to perish with the using)--in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men? These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence.

So what are we to do? True life doesn’t consist of a bunch of rules religiously kept. True life comes from knowing God, knowing Jesus Christ (John 17:3). The real victory over self-indulgence comes through Jesus-indulgence. As we indulge in him, his kingdom, and the lost, self-indulgence is displaced in our lives.

Loneliness and Independence

2008-09-22T14:15:00.002-04:00

A person with an independent spirit tends to gravitate toward others with the same independent mindset. Thus, by nature of their true selves, they can at best only experience artificial camaraderie.

If someone struggles with long-term loneliness, perhaps they should examine their lives and see if their is a deeper issue of an independent spirit.

Abandoning Age Old Arguments

2008-09-16T14:11:00.009-04:00

For hundreds of years there have been many fruitless discussions and disagreements between Calvinist and Arminianist thinkers. You do not have to look far to find various defenses of these views. Try a quick search on Google. You can easily discover the five points of Arminianism and the corresponding five points of Calvinism. And then you can get bogged down in all the logical arguments defending either side.

In my discussions with Calvinists, it appears a fundamental goal is to defend the sovereignty and power of God. Calvinists exalt the idea that God is in control, God is sovereign and unchanging. Their doctrine of election comes from his sovereign choosing.

With Arminianists I’ve found a protectiveness over the foreknowledge of God. They exalt the idea that God foreknows all events in the future, all choices and actions of man. Their doctrine of election extends from this.

Does God’s Opinion Matter?
My recent mental meanderings have made me question: What does God exalt about himself?

I recently asked a group of young people what they thought God’s glory was. I believe their answers reflect many people’s opinions: “his power”, “his strength”, a “bright shining light like Bruce Almighty saw when he was introduced to God”, “his control”, “his knowledge”. But is this what God says his glory is? Another way to ask this question is, “What does God see as glorious about himself?” Perhaps this is what we should be defending above all other theological notions.

Show Me Your Glory
Moses prays, “Show me your glory” in Exodus 33. God’s response amazes me. He doesn’t show Moses his great power, strength, or the blinding light of his presence. God answers Moses, “I will make all my goodness pass before you”. It appears that God’s goodness is what he considers most glorious about himself.

God then says he will proclaim his name to Moses. In the Hebrew dictionary, “name” means also “reputation, fame, glory, and memorial.” At the beginning of the next chapter the Lord proclaims his name:

The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation.

The glory of God has more to do with his character than his might, power, sovereignty, and knowledge.

Glory in This
God also says in Jeremiah 9:23, “Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches” (NKJV). Interestingly, God doesn’t appear to glory in these things either. He is infinitely knowledgeable, but he doesn’t glory in it. He is infinite in might, power, and ability. But he doesn’t glory in it. He is infinite in riches (“the earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it”), but he doesn’t glory in that either.

Instead, he continues, “let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,” says the LORD.” First and foremost, God obviously cares that we know and understand his lovingkindness, his judgment/justice, and his righteousness. He puts an exclamation point at the end by saying, “I delight in these things.”

A Calvinist Response to Suffering and Hell
Some theologians would have us believe that God planned and purposed evil and suffering (as well as for countless millions to be condemned to hell). When these ideas offend our understanding of love, justice and righteousness, the common Calvinistic response is: God’s thoughts are higher than our thoughts, his ways are higher than his ways; we cannot understand these things in our limited understanding. God, however, seems to have a different opinion. Minimally he believes that we can know and understand his lovingkindness, his justice and his righteousness.

What about Arminianists?
Arminianists run the risk of camping closer to the Calvinists than they admit when they affirm God foreknows the destiny of every human being. A fitting philosophical question would be, “If God foreknows my destiny, is it an actual possibility for me to choose something different than what he foreknows absolutely?” Thus they hold to a form of fatalism. Yet they will strongly defend his absolute foreknowledge while claiming man’s free will. Various unsatisfactory illustrations (to me, anyway!) are used to do this.

God isn’t Insecure
God doesn’t need us to defend his infinite power, knowledge, and sovereignty. He’s secure in who he is. In fact, God makes statements about himself that no Arminianist or Calvinist would dare make. In Jeremiah God says three times that the Israelites were burning their sons and daughters to false gods, a thing which had not entered his mind (see Jeremiah 7:31, 19:5, 32:35). God says to Abraham, “now I know that you fear God” (Gen. 22:12) and to the Israelites that he tested them 40 years “to know what was in their heart” (Deut. 8:2). There are also the instances of God changing his mind (a peculiar difficulty with many views of God’s foreknowledge): Ex. 32:12-14, Jer. 26:19, and Amos 7:3,6. (I can already hear different objections to these references.) Hmmm. I wonder if the foolishness of God is wiser than the wisdom of man.

God is Love
If there is one thing God wants to be known for, I believe it is summed up in John’s repeated phrase, “God is love”. This appears to be the most glorious thing about God. This is what God cares so much that his creation knows about him. (Perhaps we should care more about understanding this than predestination and free will.)

Certain attributes of love are included in 1 Corinthians 13. One of those is love “does not insist on its own way” (ESV). Yet Calvin, at least, would have us believe that God is love and God does insist on his own way by his sovereignty.

Our Theological Base
Theology means the study of God. Shouldn’t our starting and ending points be what God reveals as most important about himself?

God is more concerned about his goodness, his lovingkindness, his justice and his righteousness. When our logical conclusions lead us away from common sense understandings of his good character maybe we should stop. Maybe we should reexamine our theology rather than redefine who God claims to be. Should we sacrifice God’s love and goodness on the altar of his sovereignty, power and knowledge?

Shouldn’t our theology be based in the goodness of who God shows himself to be? He says we can understand and know these things. We don’t have to redefine God’s justice or grace or love to match a theological position. Instead our exegeses should stem from what God declares as the most glorious thing about him.

Let’s spend more time and energy defending and glorying in what God says he delights in. What he delights in should shape our theological interpretations of scripture.

And maybe, just maybe, the scriptures we use to defend our age old arguments have different, legitimate interpretations than what we’ve considered.

We All Worship God in Our Own Way

2008-09-10T09:04:00.010-04:00

Do you ever notice how we tend to "react" to something that challenges our beliefs or lifestyle? To defend ourselves, we often borrow from what others have said, without thinking it through completely. Many times we don't want to improve our lives toward nobler ends; instead we want to make excuses for the way we live.

This happened when I was speaking with a friend of mine, and I brought up God. He pulled the classic, "We all worship God in our own way."

Immediately, I asked the Holy Spirit for a response to this defensive notion, and then I posed the only question that came to my mind: "Oh, what way do you worship God?" He was taken aback, and I'm not sure even he was satisfied with his answer.

"We all worship God in our own way" has been used as a blanket excuse to cover the fact that one doesn't worship God at all.

If we are truly going to worship God, I think we need to worship Him according to the way He really is, not in the way we imagine or hope Him to be.

God, Suffering, and Theology

2008-09-08T13:53:00.010-04:00

I've been reading a book by popular author/editor John Piper called Suffering and the Sovereignty of God. The book has various contributors who have suffered in their own ways (including Joni Eareckson Tada & Stephen Saint), and by all means have the "right to write" about suffering because of their personal experiences.

What troubles me in this book, however, is the theological base from which the rest of the book is written.

You may be surprised to find that the theology expressed here is that all suffering exists because God ordains it. And He does this to demonstrate His glory.

God's Foreordination is the Ultimate Reason
Mark Talbot contributes here that "God never does evil. Yet this is not to say that God does not create, send, permit, or even move others to do evil..." In explaining Hebrews 1:3 he goes on to say that "God the Son holds each and every aspect of creation, including all of its evil aspects, in his 'hands' ... where it accomplishes exactly what he wants it to do." His interpretation of Ephesians 1:11 where God "works all things according to the counsel of his will" implies that God is the one working all things -- all things -- by His sovereign will. He "brings about these evil aspects for his glory... This includes -- as incredible and as unacceptable as it may currently seem -- God's having brought about the Nazis' brutality at Birkenau and Auschwitz as well as the terrible killings of Dennis Rader and even the sexual abuse of a young child: 'The Lord has made everything for its own purpose, even the wicked for the day of evil' (Prov. 16:4 NASB)..." And finally, "Nothing that exists or occurs falls outside of God's ordaining will. Nothing, including no evil person or thing or event or deed. God's foreordination is the ultimate reason why everything comes about, including the existence of all evil persons and things and the occurrence of any evil acts or events." (Excerpted from pp. 41-44.)

The Slaughter of His Son
John Piper goes on to lay what he believes is the Biblical foundation for God's purpose in creating the world, planning its sin and suffering: so that He could show the greatness of the glory of His grace by the "slaughter" of His Son. I'll limit myself to two quotes here:

According to this divine plan, God permits sin to enter the world. God ordains that what he hates will come to pass. It is not sin in God to will that there be sin. We do not need to fathom this mystery (p. 85).

"...the aim of creation is the fullest, clearest, surest display of the greatness of the glory of the grace of God. And that display would be the slaughter of the best being in the universe for millions of undeserving sinners" (p. 83).

Thus, God's intention was to bring about a fallen, sinful, suffering world, so that He could save us from it by the slaughter of His Son. This would demonstrate the greatness of the glory of His grace.

'My Thoughts Exactly'
Exegesis. John Piper and Mark Talbot did a fine job of using many scriptures to lay a foundation for their (traditional) theological position. But at the expense of what other scriptural revelation about God? Obviously, there will always be different theological camps, each one nestled closely to the scriptures that seem to affirm their views. One can do better than this, however, by looking at the Bible (God's revelation of Himself) as a whole. I wonder why a God who planned every evil would say things like this:

"All the day long I have stretched out my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people" Rom 10:21

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling" Mat 23:37

"And they built the high places of Baal ... to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire to Molech, which I had not commanded them nor had it entered My mind that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin" Jer 32:35 (cf. Jer 7:31, 19:5)

One more important question for Talbot and Piper is: are there any other legitimate interpretations for the references they use to support their theology? Quite so.

Philosophy. Does someone who is supremely good have to create evil contrasts to show how good they really are? I wonder if I should try that with my children.

Additionally, I wonder how the suffering of countless "undeserving sinners" in hell demonstrates "the greatness of the glory of the grace of God". After all, this theology affirms that God specifically did not choose to save them, but has a greater good in choosing to let them suffer the pain of Hell. Maybe "we do not need to fathom this mystery" either.

The Purpose of Faith

2008-09-03T10:31:00.003-04:00

For years different groups have touted the need for (increased) faith in order to live in the fullness of God's blessings for your life. Though this has an element of truth to it, there seems to come with it the idea that faith is for "receiving" from God. In reaction to this, coined phrases have surfaced to describe these views: "name it and claim it" or worse, "blab it and grab it".

A couple of years ago a friend of mine said that "faith is given by God for His sake, not for ours." Hmmm. More recently he commented that the purpose of faith is not so that we can "get more" but that we can "give more".

Sounds like something Jesus could have said. "Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap." It takes faith to give, especially when it costs us something (remember the widow's mite?). It seems like God is so pleased when we give in faith, that He is willing to back us up to the degree we express our faith in giving. "For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you."

Let's Talk 'Shack'

2008-08-29T12:35:00.008-04:00

A friend of mine recently encouraged me to read 'The Shack' by William P. Young. Since then I've heard mixed reviews, a kind of a polarization. There are those who seem to want to create a Christian movement behind the book, and those (maybe) diametrically opposed to it because of certain theological implications.

Do we need another Christian bandwagon? Does it have to be all or nothing?

Is this book the next "Pilgrim's Progress" as Eugene Peterson purports?

So here I go with my take on the book, not that anyone cares or will read what I have to say, let alone agree with me.

There are three areas I want to comment on: the literary elements, the theological elements, and finally the thematic elements.

Writing. From a literary standpoint I am well-pleased with Young's writing style (though this particular genre of literature is not my preference). He does a fine job incorporating various poetic devices together to aid the reader's imagination to visualize his story. And his fictitious ghostwriting is not too dissimilar from Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. While reading the book, I was concerned that different parts would not be brought to closure, but at the end I was pleasantly satisfied that all the loose ends were tied up.

Theology. It is difficult in a work of fiction to portray accurately what God is like. One symbol meant to highlight one attribute, may fall short in describing other attributes. Thus we may want to reserve full judgment regarding symbols employed. And even though he uses some symbols I would not use (you'll have to read the book yourself to find out what I mean), I understand partially why he uses them, and don't disagree completely with his rationale.

However, there are some statements made unequivocally by "God" in the story that seem to force the issue of Young's theology. I can agree with some of his views. He makes statements regarding man's free will, and God's risk in divine-human relationships. Although he paints a beautiful portrait of the relationship within the trinity, and the relationship that God wants with people, he makes certain comments regarding authority (which I disagree on) and God's foreknowledge (which I find quite lacking). But then again, we wouldn't all agree on these issues anyway.

One final area that many Christians might struggle with is that Young's God is pretty much down on religion. (Can I hear a "hurrah"?)

Theme. Although one of the themes of the book addresses the God-man relationship, the primary current is "going on in life in the face of horrendous suffering". Thematically, he handles related issues of forgiveness, healing and loss. Apparently, Young has gone through deep suffering probably similar to that of his main character, though he hasn't disclosed those events of his life (at least in any material I've come across). One would need such experiences to have a valid voice for those who have suffered so much. His answers to suffering are solid and scripturally founded.

My Conclusion
Should you read this book? Sure, if you enjoy reading. Please don't read it because it is the current Christian craze. If you are dealing with some heartache in your life, this book may be helpful. If you are looking for a theological treatise, you might be disappointed.

Is it the next "Pilgrim's Progress"? I highly doubt it.

Great Demotivator from Despair.com

2008-08-19T05:21:00.005-04:00

Government
If you think the problems we create are bad,
just wait until you see our solutions.

The Power of the Cross

2008-08-14T07:48:00.007-04:00

Paul says that the cross is "the power of God", in his first letter to the church at Corinth. Typically, the phrase "the power of God" does not invoke in me an image of Jesus on the cross, but something related to His almightiness, the amazing miracles He has done or can do, or His power in creating the world. What a strange concept that Paul would consider the crowning glory of God's power to be the cross.

Paul also states that he didn't preach to the Corinthians "with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power". So here we have God's most powerful initiative in human history, and the potential of us "emptying it of its power" through eloquence and man's wisdom.

Why is the cross of Christ considered THE power of God?

I envision the traditional response to this question being, "the cross is powerful because it brings salvation to the lost". True, the cross of Christ stands as the foundation of salvation, through which no one can come to God. However, I believe there is something more, and something more personal.

The Jews' Expectation of Messiah
It seems that the typical view for the Jews of Jesus' day was that the Messiah would come in glory and power. He would set up His kingdom on the earth, and rid the Jews of all political oppression for good. Then the world would know that they were God's chosen people.

Their understanding of Messiah included no concept of a Suffering Savior. Their king and leader would be accursed by being hanged on a tree, dying a scoundrel's death? This very idea was ridiculous to them. That's why Paul says that "Christ crucified" is a stumbling block to the Jews.

Foolishness to the Greeks
The cross of Christ was foolishness to the Greeks. They prided themselves on wisdom. Remember Aristotle, Plato, Socrates? The Greeks tried to arrive at an understanding of God through their reasoning and wisdom. But in their understanding, God could not suffer, God could not experience emotions, God could not be impacted by the choices of people, God could not change.

Their rationale went something like this: God is perfect. Any change in perfection would be a change from the perfect to the imperfect. Any impact of creatures on the Creator would be a change (such as people bringing joy or grief to God), and a change would be from perfect to imperfect. This perfect God is all-powerful and must be in ultimate control of everything that happens.

Thus the idea of God becoming human, interacting with mankind, and then suffering on a cross was quite ludicrous to the Greeks of Paul's day.

Paul's Words in Context

1Co 1:19-24 ESV For it is written, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart." 20 Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. 22 For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

The Cross, The Power of God
God is almighty. Easily, God could demonstrate His power in the world by Force and Fatalism. He could use force to overthrow all kingdoms and people opposed to Him. He could use a type of fatalism and be in control of every single event that goes on in the earth.

But we consider people who have to be in control of everything as insecure. Managers who micro-manage are not secure in their job, nor in the people that work for them, and they can in no way inspire trust in their employees. God does not reveal Himself in His word as a controlling, micro-managing God. His authority is not the kind that has to rule and control everything that goes on in His creation. Sure the Bible shows that He sets certain parameters, but even within those parameters there is much latitude.

What if God created a world where true love could exist? What if God created a world where people could determine their own courses of action? What if God created a world where creatures could reject their creator?

True Love, Free Will and Rejection
If true love could exist, it could not be forced. If it is true love, it can be rejected. In other words, if God created a world where true love existed, then He must place Himself in certain respects as vulnerable to His creation. Imagine any meaningful relationship without vulnerability.

Isaiah records this: "All we like sheep have gone astray. Each of us has turned to his own way..." (Isa. 53:6). He also records God as saying, "I have spread out My hands all day long to a rebellious people, Who walk in the way which is not good, following their own thoughts...” (Isa. 65:2).

In Genesis, God "saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart" (Gen. 6:5,6).

How Does One Win Over Rejection?
God could have responded in different ways to the problem of man's rejection. He could have totally destroyed the human race. He certainly has the right over His creation to do with it what He wants.

God could have forced people into compliance with His will. After all, people have just been hurting themselves and others from the very beginning. But God wanted more than compliance.

God wanted to win people's love, and no one wins true love by brute force.

So what does God do? His creation rejected Him. And He has striven with people for thousands of years. His children have been rebellious and erred and sinned. He could simply allow them to go off into the consequences of their sin: death (Romans 6:23). But His heart doesn’t want to give up on them: “How can I give you up...?” (Hosea 11:8).

How does He change their heart? How does He win their heart?

Isaiah prophesied several things about the coming Messiah. In chapter 53 he writes, "Who has believed our message?" Jesus would be "despised and forsaken", just as God had been for the previous thousand years. He would bear "our griefs and our sorrows", be "wounded for our transgressions" and "crushed for our iniquities". Upon Him would be laid "the iniquity of us all". Finally in verse 11 it says, "As a result of the anguish of His soul, [God] will see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities."

God's Initial Approach is Mercy
God’s "Plan A" is mercy, mercy, mercy. But then there comes a point where He can offer mercy no more. He ALWAYS offers mercy as long as it is wisely possible.

David wrote "Your gentleness makes me great" (Psalm 18:35) -- His meekness, His humility, His vulnerability. There is a power that comes with mercy, with meekness and vulnerability. There is power in forgiveness. Mercy implies giving up justice that was rightly due to you. Forgiveness entails giving up the claims you have against another person for the wrong(s) they have have done to you -- a willingness to forbear, to suffer.

Joseph did not hold the wrongs His brothers had committed against them. He did not pay them back for his 13 years of suffering. He had the right and the power to punish them all. He did, however, put one in jail to see if the brothers’ hearts had changed, but not out of vindictiveness. It was an elaborate plan to get his youngest brother Benjamin there to Egypt. When they were all there at once, he revealed his identity to them, extending forgiveness and mercy. What effect would this have had on them, after they had wanted to kill him, sold him as a slave, and stole 13 years away from his dad and closest brother?

The cross was God’s attempt at changing our hardened hearts. We are a people who deserve to perish because of rejecting God, rejecting the Life-Giver. But God was not willing that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9). His plan was to try to win us through vulnerability, through taking our place -- the power of voluntarily suffering in another person’s place.

This is the power of the Cross.

Son of Hamas Leader Renounces Islam for Christ

2008-08-13T13:26:00.005-04:00

FOXNews.com - Son of Hamas Leader Turns Back on Islam and Embraces Christianity

Mosab Hassan Yousef is an extraordinary young man with an extraordinary story. He was born the son of one of the most influential leaders of the militant Hamas organization in the West Bank and grew up in a strict Islamic family.

Now, at 30 years old, he attends an evangelical Christian church, Barabbas Road in San Diego, Calif. He renounced his Muslim faith, left his family behind in Ramallah and is seeking asylum in the United States.

The story of how his life unfolded is truly amazing, whether you agree or disagree with his views. Below is a transcript on an exclusive FOX News interview with Hassan as he tells firsthand how a West Bank Muslim became a West Coast Christian.

JONATHAN HUNT: Why, after 25 years, did you change?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: I believe that all those walls that Islam built for the last 1,400 years are not existing (sic) anymore. They don't recognize this. They built those walls and made people ignorant because they're afraid. They didn't want people to discuss anything about the reality of Islam, about the big questions of Islam and they asked their followers, the Muslims, 'Don't ask about those certain questions.'

But now, people have media. If the father closes the door for his daughter not to leave the house, she's going to go behind her computer and travel the world. So people easily can get information, knowledge, searching (sic) engines, so it's very, very available for everybody to study about Islam, about other religions. Not from the Islam point of view, but from other points of view.

So for the next 25 years this is for sure going to make huge change in the Muslim and the Arab world.

JONATHAN HUNT: You speak from a unique perspective, a man who grew up not just in an Islamic family but as part of an organization seen by many people around the world as an extreme force in Islam: Hamas. What is the reality of Islam? You say people don't see the reality; What is the reality of Islam?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: There are two facts that Muslims don't understand ... I'd say about more than 95 percent of Muslims don't understand their own religion. It came with a much stronger language than the language that they speak so they don't understand it ... they rely only on religious people to get their knowledge about this religion.

Second, they don't understand anything about other religions. Christian communities live between Muslims and they're minority and they (would) rather not to go speak out and tell people about Jesus because it's dangerous for them.

So, all their ideas about other religions on earth are from Islamic perspectives. So those two realities, most people don't understand.

If people, if Muslims, start to understand their religion — first of all, their religion — and see how awful stuff is in there, they'll start to figure out, this can't (be) ... because most religious people focus on certain points of Islam. They have many points that they are very embarrassed to talk about.

JONATHAN HUNT: Such as?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: Such as Muhammad's wives. You will never go to a mosque and hear about anyone talking about Muhammad's wives, which is like more than 50 wives — and nobody knows (this), by the way. If you ask the majority of Muslims, they will not know this fact.

So they're embarrassed to talk about this, but they talk about the glory of Islam, they talk about the victory, the victories that Muhammad made. So, when people just like look at themselves and see they're defeated, they have ignorance, they're not educated, they're not leading the world as they're expected to do. They’re think they want to get back to that victory by doing the same, what Muhammad did, but disregarding (sic) the timing. They forget that this happened 1,400 years ago and it's not going to happen again.

JONATHAN HUNT: Do they want to destroy Christianity?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: Islam destroyed Christianity from the beginning and Muslims don't recognize that they stabbed Christianity (in) its heart when they said that Jesus wasn't killed on the cross. They think that they honor him in this way.

Basically, any Christians understand that this way, (but Muslims) tell Jesus, okay, we don't care, you didn't die for us. Someone sacrificed his life for you, (but) you tell him, okay, you didn't do it!

This is what Muslims are doing basically. But they don't understand that this is the most important part of Christianity: the cross!

So, they are ignorant, they don't know what they are doing and it explains what an evil idea it is behind this Islam.

JONATHAN HUNT: What specific event or events began to change your mind about Islam?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: Since I was a child I started to ask very difficult questions, even my family was telling me all the time, 'You're a very difficult person and we were having trouble answering your questions. Why are you asking so many questions?' This was from the beginning, to be honest with you.

But I felt that everybody — and my father was a good example for me because he was a very honest, humble person, very nice to my mother, to us, and raised us on the principle of forgiveness, okay? I thought that everybody in Islam was like this.

When I was 18 years old, and I was arrested by the Israelis and was in an Israeli jail under the Israeli administration, Hamas had control of its members inside the jail and I saw their torture; (they were) torturing people in a very, very bad way.

JONATHAN HUNT: Hamas members torturing other Hamas members?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: Hamas leaders! Hamas leaders that we see on TV now, and big leaders, responsible for torturing their own members. They didn't torture me, but that was a shock for me, to see them torturing people: putting needles under their nails, burning their bodies. And they killed lots of them.

JONATHAN HUNT: Why were they torturing people?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: Because they suspected that they had relations with the Israelis and (were) co-operating with the Israeli occupation against Hamas ... So hundreds of people were victims for this, and I was a witness for about a year for this torture. So that was a huge change in my life. I started to open my (eyes), but, the point (is) that I got that there are good Muslims and bad Muslims. Good Muslims, such as my father, and bad Muslims, like those Hamas members in the jail torturing people.

So that was the beginning of opening my eyes wide.

JONATHAN HUNT: You talk about the good Muslims, like your father, yet you still now renounce the faith of your father. Could you have not been a good Muslim?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: Now, here's the reality: after I studied Christianity — which I had a big misunderstanding about, because I studied about Christianity from Islam, which is, there is nothing true about Christianity when you study it from Islam, and that was the only source.

When I studied the Bible carefully verse by verse, I made sure that that was the book of God, the word of God for sure, so I started to see things in a different way, which was difficult for me, to say Islam is wrong.

Islam is my father. I grew up for (one) father — 22 years for that father — and another father came to me and told me, 'I'm sorry, I'm your father.' And I was like, 'What are you talking about? Like, I have my own father, and it's Islam!' And the father of Christianity told me, 'No, I'm your father. I was in jail, and this (Islam) is not your father.'

So basically this is what happened. It's not easy to believe this (Islam) is not your father anymore. So I had to study Islam again from a different point of view to figure out all the mistakes, the huge mistakes and its effects, not only on Muslims — (of) which I hated the values ... I didn't like all those traditions that make people's lives more difficult — but its effects also on humanity. On humanity! People killing each other (in) the name of God.

So definitely I started to figure out the problem is Islam, not the Muslims and those people — I can't hate them because God loved them from the beginning. And God doesn't create junk. God created good people that he loved, but they're sick, they have the wrong idea. I don't hate those people anymore but I feel very sorry for them and the only way for them to be changed (is) by knowing the word of God and the real way to him.

JONATHAN HUNT: Does it worry you that in saying these things — and given your background and your words carrying extra weight — there is a danger that you will increase the difficulties, the hatred between Christians and Muslims in the world right now?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: This could happen if a Christian person will go talk to them about the reality of Islam. They put Christians on the enemy list anyway, before you talk to them about Islam. So if you go to them and tell them, as a Christian, they will be offended immediately and they will hate you and this will definitely increase the vacuum between both religions — but what made someone like me change?

Years ago, years ago, when I was there, God opened my eyes, my mind also, and I became a completely different person. So now, I can do this duty, while you as Christians can help me do it, but maybe you wouldn't be able to. (Muslims) have no excuse now.

JONATHAN HUNT: How difficult a process has this been for you to effectively walk away from your family, leave your home behind? How difficult is that?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: Taking your skin off your bones, that's what happened. I love my family, they love me. And my little brothers, they’re like my sons. I raised them. Basically, it was the biggest decision in my life.

I left everything behind me, not only family. When you decide to convert to Christianity or any other religion from Islam, it's not (enough) to just say goodbye and leave, you know? It's not like that. You're saying goodbye to culture, civilization, traditions, society, family, religion, God — what you thought was God for so many years! So it's not easy. It's very complicated. People think it's that easy, like it doesn't matter. Now I'm here in the U.S. and I got my freedom and it's great, but at the same time, nothing is like family, you know. To lose your family —

JONATHAN HUNT: Have you lost your family?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: My family is educated and it was very difficult for them. They asked me many times, especially for the first two days, to keep my faith to myself and not go to the media and announce it.

But for me it was a duty from God to announce his name and praise him (around) the world because my reward is going to be that he's going to do the same for me. So I did it, basically, as a duty. I (wonder) how many people can do what I can do today? I didn't find any.

So, I had to be strong about that. That was very challenging. That was the most difficult decision in my life and I didn't do it for fun. I didn't do it for anything from this world. I did it only for one reason: I believed in it. People are suffering every day because of wrong ideas. I can help them get out of this endless circle ... the track the devil (laid) for them.

JONATHAN HUNT: Have you spoken to your father recently?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: There is no chance to communicate with my father because he's in jail now and there is (sic) no phones in the jail to communicate with him.

JONATHAN HUNT: Have other members of your family told you how he's reacted?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: They've visited him from time to time. Till this moment, I don't know his reaction exactly but I'm sure he's very sad (over) a decision like this. But at the same time, he's going to understand, because he knows me and he knows that I don't make any decisions without (believing strongly in them).

JONATHAN HUNT: Is it making his life more difficult among fellow Hamas members?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: Definitely. My family, including my father, had to carry this cross with me. It wasn't their choice. It was my choice, but they had to carry this cross with me and I ask God — I pray for (my father), all my brothers and my sisters here in this church, praying all the time for them — 'God, open their eyes, their minds, to come to Christ. And bless them because they had to carry this cross with me.'

JONATHAN HUNT: Tell me about Hamas and the way it works. Is Hamas a purely Islamic religious organization as you see it, and that's where, in your eyes, its faults lie, or are there other parts of it which are a problem for you? Or is Hamas a good organization? What is Hamas to you?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: If we talk about people, there are good people everywhere. Everywhere. I mean, good people that God created.

Do they do their own things? Yes, they do their own things. I know people who support Hamas but they never got involved in terrorist attacks, for example ... They follow Hamas because they love God and they think that Hamas represents God. They don’t have knowledge, they don't know the real God and they never studied Christianity. But Hamas, as representative for Islam, it's a big problem.

The problem is not Hamas, the problem is not people. The root of the problem is Islam itself as an idea, as an idea. And about Hamas as an organization, of course, the Hamas leadership, including my father, they're responsible; they're responsible for all the violence that happened from the organization. I know they describe it as reaction to Israeli aggression, but still, they are part of it and they had to make decisions in those operations against Israel, (for) which there was the killing of many civilians.

JONATHAN HUNT: Do you believe Israel blameless in the conflict?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: Occupation is bad. I can't say Israel — I'm not against any nation. We can't say Israelis, we can't say Palestinians, we're talking about ideas. Israel has the right to defend itself, nobody can (argue) against this. But sometimes they use (too much) aggression against civilians. Sometimes many civilians were killed because those soldiers weren't responsible enough, how they treat people at the checkpoints.

My message even to the Israeli soldiers: at least treat people in a good way at the checkpoints. You don't have to look really bad and it's not about nations, it's about just wrong ideas on both sides and the only way for two nations really to get out of the endless circle is to know the principles that Jesus brought to this earth: grace, love, forgiveness. Without this, they will never be able to move on, or break this endless circle.

JONATHAN HUNT: You've seen your father jailed, you've been in prison yourself. You've seen Hamas carry out acts of terror against Israelis, and yet you say everybody needs to rise above that?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: Definitely. This is the only choice. Nobody has magic power to do something for the Middle East. No one. You can ask any politician here in the U.S., you can ask any Palestinian politician or Arab politician, Israeli leaders; no one, no one can do anything. Even if they believe in peace now: they're part of the game.

They're part of the trick. They can't, even if you find a brave person, like Rabin, who was called by an Israeli to make peace with the Palestinians and give them a state, no one, even if you find a strong leader, they can't do this. You can't force an independent country to give another country independence. (Especially when) the other country wants to destroy it.

Everybody is hurt. Israeli soldiers, they lost their friends. Palestinians, they lost their children, their fathers. (There are) many people in prison still, and many people were killed. Thousands. So everybody will never forget this. If they want to keep looking to the past, they will never get out of this circle. The only way to start (is just by) moving on. They were born under the occupation as Palestinians.

The last two generations, it's not their choice. The new generations from Israel — if we say disregarding the existence of Israel is right or wrong, what's the guilt of those people who were born in Israel and they have no other country to go to? It's their country now, that's how they see it. And they are going to keep their resistance and defense against whomever. (They will) say, 'Get out of this land!' So the only way is for both nations to start to understand the grace, love and forgiveness of God, to be able to get out of this.

JONATHAN HUNT: Do you believe that Israel can ever strike a peace deal with Hamas?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: There is no chance. Is there any chance for fire to co-exist with the water? There is no chance. Hamas can play politics for 10 years, 15 years; but ask any one of Hamas' leaders, 'Okay, what's going to happen after that? Are you just going to live and co-exist with Israel forever?' The answer is going to be no ... unless they want to do something against the Koran. But it's their ideology and they can't just say 'We're not going to do it.' So there is no chance. It's not about Israel, it's not about Hamas: it's about both ideologies. There is no chance.

JONATHAN HUNT: Aren't you terrified that somebody is going to try to kill you for saying these things — which would be approved of according to parts of the Koran?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: They got to kill my ideas first, (and) that's it, they're already out. So how are they going to kill my idea? How are they going to kill the opinions that I have? ... They can kill my body, but they can't kill my soul.

JONATHAN HUNT: You're not afraid?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: As a human, you know, I can be very brave now, I'm not thinking about it at this moment and I feel that God is on my side. But if this will be the challenge, I ask God to give me enough strength.

JONATHAN HUNT: Have you been threatened?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: No, not really. Honestly, most Muslims and Muslim leaders here in the U.S. community, European communities, they are trying to get ahold of me. They are calling my famiily, my mother, and asking for my contacts. They are telling her, 'We want to help him.'

JONATHAN HUNT: They think you need help?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: Yeah, they think that Christians took advantage of me, and this is completely wrong. I've been a Christian for a long time before they knew, or anyone knew. I love Jesus, I followed him for many years now. It wasn't a secret for most of the time, and this time I just did it to glorify the name of God and praise him.

They're not dealing with a regular Muslim. They know that I'm educated, they know that I studied, they know that I studied Islam and Christianity. When I made my decision, I didn't make it because someone did magic on me or convinced me. It was completely my decision.

JONATHAN HUNT: Do you miss Ramallah?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: Definitely. You've been there and you know how a wonderful country (it is). Very, very beautiful. It's a very small spot and it has everything — this is why people are fighting for that piece of land. I definitely miss Ramallah. Jereusalem. The Old City.

JONATHAN HUNT: Do you believe you will ever be able to go back?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: I think I belong to that land, and sooner or later I'm going to go back, no matter what. If they want to kill me, they (will) do whatever they want to do. I have a family there, they love me, they completely support me now with my decisions. Maybe they don't want me to talk to the media but they believe that I made a decision that I completely believe in. So they support me, so I love my family. I'm going to go back there again one day. I love my town.

JONATHAN HUNT: Do you think you'll ever go back to a Middle East living in peace?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: There will be a 100-person peace when Jesus comes back, when he judges everybody. His kingdom's going to be 1,000 years and it's going to be completely peaceful and it's going to be the kingdom of God.

JONATHAN HUNT: What is your basic message to any Muslim listening to this right now?

MOSAB HASSAN YOUSEF: My message to them is, first of all, to open their minds. They were born to Muslim families — this is how they got Islam and this is just like ... any other religion, like growing up (in) a Christian family, or growing up (in) a Jewish family.

So my point is that I want those people to open their eyes, their minds, to start to understand and imagine that they weren't born for a Muslim famiily. And use their minds.

Why did God give them minds? Open their hearts. Read the Bible. Study their religion. I want to open the gate for them, I want them to be free. They will find a good life on earth just by following God — and they're also going to guarantee the other life.

Before the 'Big Bang'

2008-08-07T16:16:00.012-04:00

While having dinner with a group of scholars, most of whom were scientists, Ravi Zacharias asked them a couple of questions related to the scientific beginnings of the universe.

"If the Big Bang were indeed where it all began , may I ask what preceded the Big Bang?" Their answer, which I had anticipated, was that the universe was shrunk down to a singularity.

I pursued, "But isn't it correct that a singularity as defined by science is a point at which all the laws of physics break down?"

"That is correct," was the answer.

"Then, technically, your starting point is not scientific either."

There was silence, and their expressions betrayed the scurrying mental searches for an escape hatch.

Taken from Ravi's book, Jesus Among Other Gods, page 64.

Please share your feedback by posting a comment below.

Ravi Zacharias on Postmodernism

2008-07-14T07:38:00.007-04:00

I found this quote at the "Last Row" blog taken from Ravi's book Jesus Among Other Gods:

Philosophically, you can believe anything, so long as you do not claim it to be true.

Morally, you can practice anything, so long as you do no claim that it is a “better” way.

Religiously, you can hold to anything, so long as you do not bring Jesus Christ into it.

If a spiritual idea is eastern, it is granted critical immunity; if western, it is thoroughly criticized. Thus, a journalist can walk into a church and mock its carryings on, but he or she dare not do teh same if the ceremony is from the eastern fold. Such is the mood at the end of the twentieth century.

A mood can be a dangerous state of mind, because it can crush reason under the weight of feeling. But that is precisely what I believe postmodernism best represents–a mood.

The New Testament Church

2008-05-29T15:53:00.008-04:00

In order to have an understanding of one's place in the church it might be good to take a look at what the early church looked like. The book of Acts gives us some insights into the development of the church: what people did administratively, and then what God did to keep His purposes in place. Paul also wrote in three epistles about the gifts that God employs in His people for the encouragement and building up of His church.

What the People Did:

They prayed until they were endued with the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1 and 2)
They devoted themselves to: the apostles' teaching, to breaking bread together, to fellowship, and to prayer (Acts 2:42)
They met from house to house
They appointed deacons to deal with practical and administrative needs (Acts 6)

What God Did:

He allowed the first church split - not because of differences and hurts! (Acts 8) Did the church become too comfortable? The result was people spreading the gospel beyond Jerusalem.
He told the prophets and teachers in Antioch to set apart Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13) for evangelism & missions, expanding to the Gentiles. They also were led to encourage the disciples in different places.
Paul worked for two years daily in the school of Tyrannus (Acts 19).
They also established elders in the churches (Acts 19, 1 Timothy 3, Titus 1).

All of this happened against the backdrop of the apostles, deacons, prophets and teachers, etc. sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Gifts in the Body
God's Gifts. In Roman's 12 Paul mentions gifts that God gives and their accordant faith levels: Prophecy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Giving, Leading and Mercy.

Christ's Gifts. In Ephesians 4 Paul mentions gifts that Christ gave in order to equip the saints for the work of the ministry: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers.

The Holy Spirit's Gifts. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 12 about the gifts that the Holy Spirit gives for the common good: words of wisdom, words of knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, the effecting of miracles, prophecy, the distinguishing of spirits, various kinds of tongues, and the interpretation of tongues.

In each member of the church there is overlap from these three groupings of gifts that Paul writes about. And God's design is to use these gifts in us for "the work of the ministry" and for the building up of the body of Christ. And Paul says He distributes these as He wills.

An interesting note to me is that many people will readily agree that the gifts in Romans 12 exist in the church today, while they might pick and choose gifts they think exist today from Ephesians 4 and 1 Corinthians 12. However, I have never seen any scriptural grounds that suggest that some of these gifts are not for His church today.

Church Expectations

2008-05-29T14:47:00.013-04:00

In the first post in this category, "The Church", I postulated that there are three different ship allegories for how we view the church. The first is where members are all on individual boats sailing the same direction. The second is a cruise ship where the Captain and the officers/staff do all the work while the rest are along for the ride and for their enjoyment. The third, and most biblically accurate, is a ship like a clipper, where individuals in the church are on the same ship, each functioning with their specific giftings, responsibilities, and tasks so that Jesus' ship can be directed to His desired port of call.

With this in mind, what are appropriate expectations people should have for church? People have left churches because of music, because of hurts and difficulties in relationships, because the church fell short in keeping someone's child on the right track, because the children and youth programming weren't to a parent's liking, because a pastor didn't visit them when they were sick, etc. These motivations for leaving a church point to expectations people often have but are maybe unspoken.

But are these expectations realistic and right? If not, what expectations are correct in the church context?

Appropriate Expectations
To stay consistent with our ship analogy, when a sailor signed on for duty on a ship, there were certain expectations he would have: food, a place to sleep, and payment. Of course there was also the real possibility that he could die at sea. In actuality, the sailor would NOT expect there to be any real level of comfort.

And there would be expectations on him by the Captain. He would be expected to work. He would be expected to help the other sailors with their work as the need might arise. He would be assigned a "watch", and he would be on call rain or shine if there was any emergency. He would be expected to obey all the Captain's orders, even if there wasn't any explanation given.

Jesus is the Captain
If Jesus is the "head" of His body, then the individual members of the body must comply with what "orders" are received from Him. If He is the Christ and the Son of the Living God, then those who follow Him must obey Him as their authority. If He is the Captain of His ship, then we do not come to His ship with expectations of comfort and ease, but rather of basic necessities.

And the real and right expectations come from Jesus to us, rather than from us to the church. Are we in a place where we have yielded to the Captain's right of command for our lives within the church context?

Upon this Rock

2008-05-28T13:22:00.010-04:00

In the recent post "Which Ship Are You On?" I mentioned three different ship analogies of how we can perceive the church. One is a bunch of individual sailboats, perhaps all headed the same direction. The second is a cruise ship where the church leadership does the "work of the ministry" and everyone else is along for the ride. But perhaps the analogy most consistent with scripture is the clipper ship, where everyone is on board, doing individual functions, but all working together under one Captain's command.

This last example obviously requires more commitment. In an individual sailboat, one could decide not to go along any more and turn back. One might decide to sail a different direction, of have a different agenda. But on the clipper ship, one must be committed to the good of the whole, and committed to the purpose of the Captain. One couldn't on the spur of the moment decide they don't want to participate. Everyone is needed for the proper function of the ship. People couldn't avoid others with personality conflicts. In this ship people have to learn to work together.

The Gates of Hades
Jesus had an interesting response when Peter acknowledged that Jesus was "the Christ, the Son of the Living God." Jesus said to Peter in response, "You are Peter (Petros - a stone), and on this rock (petra - a large rock) I will build My church..." Jesus wasn't saying that He would build His church on Peter, a stone, but "upon this rock", this principle that Peter referred to.

Jesus' Place as Authority
Christ means Messiah, the Anointed One, anointed as King, Priest, and Prophet. The fact that He is the Son of the Living God connotes ultimate Authority. Jesus would build His church upon this principle. He is the Captain of the ship called His Church.

His place as King, Priest, Prophet and Ultimate Authority is fundamental in our understanding of His church. He is in charge, and He has the right to command His ship, and everyone on it. And for those who participate in His church in this way, have certain privileges.

One of the privileges is that the Gates of Hell will not prevail against His church. Do you feel overwhelmed by the gates of Hell? Are you on His ship or your own ship? Are you submitted to the Captain's authority? If so, then Hell will not prevail against you. Additionally, you will walk in authority: "whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."

The Bible Says So???

2008-05-18T19:40:00.019-04:00

This post is adapted from two messages given at Titusville Branch Fellowship in May 2008. Click to listen to Part One or Part Two.

One thing I've found frustrating over the years is hearing people give a defense for their faith saying, "because the Bible says". This kind of defense in our culture simply does not work. And it leaves the impression that the only evidence for a Christian belief is some kind of "blind faith". It suggests (as Josh McDowell states) that Christians have checked their brains at the door.

I can't imagine, when Paul was sharing his newly found revelation of Christ with the non-Jewish people, that he said, "Well, the Torah says so!" The Jews believed in the Torah, but the Gentiles didn't. What was his approach with the Gentiles?

Paul gave a clue when he wrote his letter to the Roman church. Romans 1:18-20 give some interesting insight into his perspective. Three things of note:

People suppress the truth by unrighteousness.
There are things evident within all people (God made them evident).
There are things clearly seen about God through His creation.

Suppressing the Truth
It has been said that "people don't choose a belief system to live toward nobler ends, but to justify a lifestyle". In other words, people don't seek truth for truth's sake. They seek a sort of value system that will still let them get away with certain things they want to indulge in. By rationalizing certain decisions, we suppress truth. And the fact that we have to convince ourselves it's okay this time, tells us that we are actually suppressing truth. "Other people do it." "It's not that bad." "It's only a white lie." "We choose our own truth." The only reason we have to make up these excuses is because there is something inside us telling us the decision is wrong. And what we are really saying is we will suppress truth, we will do what is wrong, whenever it is convenient for us.

The bottom line here is that many people have a belief system, not because they are convinced it is true. Their belief system is necessary to justify their lifestyle. Until this particular issue is uncovered, there probably isn't much you can share about the reality of Jesus Christ.

Evident Within
Paul says there are certain things that God has made evident within all people. If this is true, then it we must let it affect the way we "defend" our faith. We need to find and point to the things which are "evident within". Do you believe that God made what is known about Him evident to the world? Apart from Scripture? That is what Paul is saying. If we believe this, it should affect how we share with others.

One thing that is NOT evident within everyone is the truth of the Bible! We shouldn't be appealing to the Bible to help a person believe in the Bible. We should be appealing to what is already evident within them.

What are the things that are evident within?

Conscience -- It is clear that we all have a conscience. We can rationalize it away. And the fact that we have tried only reinforces the point.
Morality -- Our culture has for years endeavored to suppress the idea of Right and Wrong. In Mere Christianity C.S. Lewis points out simply that we all appeal to this knowledge of right and wrong on a regular basis. Basically, his point is that we all at one time or another appeal to a standard of conduct we expect others to be fully aware of. You can read a short excerpt here.
Value -- It's interesting how most of us have a sense of our own worth. And for those who don't seem to, society tries to tell them how much worth they have. But some people who say they don't believe they are worth anything, are constantly exposing their true convictions through their choices of self-preservation. Even people who contemplate suicide are often trying to attract attention to themselves, or their own perceived worth.

These things are evident within, and with a little forethought, can be appealed to in contrast to a person's excuses for not believing the truth.

Clearly Seen
Some things God has made evident within and some things He has made clearly visible without. Paul says God's invisible attributes (His eternal power and divine nature) are clearly seen through what has been made. Again, if this is true, then we can appeal to things that are clearly seen. In conversing with people, we must operate from this vantage point.

What is clearly seen?

All of life attests to the Law of Cause and Effect. For everything we see there is some explanatory cause. And each cause is an effect of another cause. And you can keep going back through the causes of causes until you come to a First Cause.

One important aspect of the Law of Cause and Effect is that an effect or result cannot be greater than its cause. How does this relate? Dr. Henry Morris explains that the first cause in a universe of infinite space must at least be infinite in size. The first cause of boundless energy and power (seen through nuclear energy, stars, hurricanes and tornadoes, etc.) must have infinite power (at least in respect to our understanding). Additional examples include:

The First Cause of endless Time must be eternal in duration.
The First Cause of infinite Complexity must be infinite in intelligence.
The First Cause of Consciousness must be personal.
The First Cause of Life must be living.
Click here for further reading.

They are Without Excuse?
The end of Romans 1:20 says that "they are without excuse." Yet people are continually making excuses to deny the truth. Here are some I've heard over the years:

We all worship God in our own way.
Whatever the majority says is right is ethically right.
There is no absolute truth.
There is no right or wrong.
God wants us to be happy. This is what makes me happy.
Jesus' disciples made up the story of his resurrection.
A loving God wouldn't send people to Hell.
How can a loving God allow all the suffering in the world?

Asking the Right Questions
1 Peter 3:15 says we need to always be ready to give a defense for the hope that is in us. Sometimes the best defense, is a good ... question. "The Bible says" or "you have to take it by faith" is never a good response for the unbeliever who doesn't believe in the Bible. We must learn to ask questions that appeal to fundamental truths that are evident and clear to people -- questions that will point to the inconsistency of their excuse.

For example, a friend of mine used the familiar, "We all worship God in our own way." After a short pause, asking the Holy Spirit for a response, I asked him, "What way do you worship God?" In fact, this man didn't worship God at all.

When people say "there is no absolute truth", why not ask them "is that true?" Or to "whatever the majority says is right is morally right", ask something like, "what if ten guys decide it's right to rape one girl, is that right?" What about this one, "there is no right or wrong"? "So it wasn't wrong for Hitler to kill six million Jews?"

These types of responses point to the truth that is clearly seen. They expose the ridiculousness of coined excuses learned from a society that has suppressed truth. Why not begin listing excuses you hear from people today? Ask the Holy Spirit to bring to your mind appropriate questions to ask people that will point them to the truth that God has made evident within them.

What Can One Person Do?

2008-05-16T16:52:00.006-04:00

Johnson County DA Phill Kline makes an interesting point regarding moral relativism (and what just one person can do about it) in this interview with CitizenLink.com. You can see the original video by clicking on the title above.

To hear the short audio blurb from this interview click here.

Which Ship Are You On?

2008-05-08T16:48:00.015-04:00

The recent analogy came to me that many times the people in our churches look like this picture: individuals independently sailing along, maybe sailing in the same direction. But sailing independently none-the-less.

But I wonder if the better picture of what Christ wants His church to look like is this one: individuals in the church on the same ship, each functioning with their specific giftings and responsibilities, so that Jesus' ship can be directed to His desired port of call.

This seems consistent with Philippians 2:1,2: If therefore there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, 2 make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.

Paul was saying that maybe the church is a very encouraging, loving church, full of the fellowship of the Spirit, and affection and compassion. But there is more. We can do all that but miss the next part: being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Is the church today full of people independently serving their gifts, rather than serving Christ's church with their gifts?

I recently saw a book whose last chapter was entitled: "Your Pastor is not a Five-Fold Pastor". There is no way the pastor can do it all. Additionally, the church leadership is NOT called to do the work of the ministry. If the pastor and the elders were to do it all, then the rest of the body would be passengers, and the boat would look like this:

A cruise ship! That is not Jesus' design for His church. Ephesians 4:11,12 says that Jesus gave apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, "for the equipping of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ." It is every member of the church who is called to the work of the ministry, for the whole body's sake.

Sometimes we use our gifts the way WE want, rather than for the edifying of Christ's body. He gave the gift, and He has the right to define how we use the gifts He's given. Sometimes we set our own parameters based on our preferences, feelings, or attitudes. But this hinders Christ and His work in His church.

In order for the church to meet the purpose Jesus has for it, individuals must surrender their right to their own vessel, and climb aboard His. And then they must use their gifts and abilities primarily for the service of Christ's vessel.

Which ship are you on?

Home At Last

2008-04-25T11:50:00.023-04:00

Thursday night, the team that went to Migori, Kenya from Titusville returned home. Because of lack of internet access I was not able to provide an update about our trip since the Monday, 14th of April.

Pastors Conference
Tuesday the 15th, the Pastors Conference at the Suna Mission Church was begun in the afternoon. Because most attendees were from the Luo tribe, translation was done from English into Luo (not Swahili). I began my sessions on insights into the worth of God taken from the Lord's Prayer. Phil Taylor began his sessions on the worth of Jesus. As the week progressed more and more pastors and ministry workers were able to attend. When we finished on Friday, there were more than 200 in attendance. Probably the one thing that impacted me the most, was their reverence for the "word of God" and the men of God who preached His word. They were very grateful to receive fresh insights into who God is, and His heart for them and the world.

MSOMI Academy
Throughout the week, the rest of the team (Josiah, Matthew, Allison, Kelly and Brandon) invested their time with the children at the academy/orphanage. There are about 150 kids, 50 of which are orphans (6 because of parents killed during the recent political crisis, most from parents who died of AIDS). The rest come from single parent homes where the parent is too sick and/or too poor to provide for the children, or have both parents and are too poor to provide for their children. Eighty percent of the people of Migori are unemployed, and the many of those who have some type of job, get paid very little and are desperately poor.

Thomas is one of the children whose parents were killed in the recent political turmoil.

Each day the team had an hour or so teaching a Bible lesson through skits and puppet shows for all the kids, they attended some of the kids' classes and in the afternoon they played with the kids with kites, jump rope, blowing bubbles, playing soccer, frisbee and kickball. On the last Saturday, additional kids from the community came for "World Changers Day" where all of us helped with teaching, showing part of the children's Jesus Video, a Bible study, Bible lessons, and playing different games. At the end of the day together, we gave sodas to all the kids (many of the kids from the orphanage had never had a soda in their lives).

Currently, the academy is looking for people to sponsor children at the academy. I have papers on almost 50 children for whom the ministry is trusting God daily for provision. To sponsor a child through the Migori Worship Center is only $35 a month which helps to cover some of the daily expenses for the kids (including food, clothing, school materials, etc.) If you are interested in sponsoring a child, you can contact me for more information.

Migori Worship Center
On our first Sunday our team met with the leadership team for the Migori Worship Center. There were around seventy people who represented leadership from their 14 church plants, the school/orphanage administration, the Bible School leadership, the pastoral leadership, the praise and worship leadership, and the women's leadership.

On the following Sunday, Phil was able to preach at the Migori Worship Center, and then he and I traveled to and preached at two separate church plants (Phil to Ragana, and I to Stella/the Cannan Worship Center).

These are some of the people from the Cannan Worship Centre, a recent church plant 10 months old and about 9 km away from Migori. (Before the church was planted, some people were walking 15 km to church. Now they only have to walk 5 or 6 km.) They have a small fellowship of about 15 to 20 people. They are currently trusting God for provision for materials and labor for a church to be built on a tract of land recently donated to them. They are also praying for musical instruments for their worship team, and a PA system. They have a heart to see the people in the Stella area won to Jesus.

We are in Migori

2008-04-14T08:33:00.003-04:00

Saturday we traveled to Migori. What an experience! I thought the roads in PA were bad. But these are crazy. We arrived in Migori around 9pm. No way to communicate unless we go in town to an internet shop (dialup on their computers). We are trying to get a pay as you go phone to work that we purchased so we can call home a little, but it isn't working yet.

Sunday we had a wonderful time of sharing with the youth and children for Sunday School. Matt worked with Kelly with a younger class, Josiah helped me with the high school class. Phil taught 4-5-6 graders and Alison and Brandon taught another younger class. After some worship I taught for a half hour or so during thier "Bible Exposition" and Phil preached in their main service. In the afternoon we met with their leadership of about 70 people, and were entertained by the orphan children singing, dancing and a monologue. I will post pictures when I get home.

Monday (today) we traveled to Bishop Okinda High School (built on property donated by Pastor John Okinda). Josiah, Matt and Brandon got to play soccer with their team. It was a blast! The Migori church has a church branch that meets their at the school and we met briefly with their leaders.

There is so much need here for sponsors for the orphans, and for high school students who live at the ministry school, it costs more than $35 per month per child for their needs. Churches here are in need of pastoral training, discipleship, instruments for worship, and new buildings.

We are doing well, eating rice, chicken, spaghetti, ugali, some beef, french fries, potatoes, collard greens, pancakes and french toast. We are staying pretty healthy.

Josiah and Matt are enjoying the kids. They are working with them right now, and will work with them all week, with a big gathering on Saturday with several hundred kids.

Phil and I are looking forward to the Pastor's Conference starting tomorrow (Tuesday) and goes until Friday. Many pastors are coming from many kilometers away.

Blessings to all,
David

Nairobi

2008-04-11T17:16:00.003-04:00

Hi everyone,

We arrived in Nairobi after missing our connection in Detroit, but getting the next one to Amsterdam (we were all separated for that 8 hour flight) that got us to our connection to Nairobi with very little time to spare. All in all it was an okay flight, just long and uncomfortable. We arrived in Nairobi around 7:15p.m. Nairobi time which is 12:15p.m. at home. We lost three pieces of luggage, Phil's personal stuff, and some gifts for the orphanage. But we are trusting we can pick them up in the morning.

And thankfully, we found that the trip to Migori is only about 7 hours. We are all well but tired. Thanks for your prayers, don't know when I will be back online.

Love you all,
David

Kenya Team 2008

2008-04-09T10:53:00.004-04:00

This is the team going to Kenya this month. Please pray for us. Phil and I will be sharing with Kenyan pastors at a pastors conference. Josiah, Matt, Kelly, Brandon, and Alison will be working with 170 kids in the orphanage.

You can join this group in facebook by clicking on the title above this post.

There is no Absolute Truth

2008-04-02T13:49:00.014-04:00

Truth is relative. We all create our own truth. All religions are equally valid.

Theses are the much heralded platitudes of society today. In the age of tolerance and political correctness, those who don't hold these views are considered biased, bigoted, hateful, intolerant, etc.

Hmmm... Can anyone see the irony here?

Who Says?
I wonder: "Who says? Who says there is no absolute truth? Who says we all create our own truth?"

And where did they get the idea from? Was there any research done before people started with these remarks? Maybe someone who didn't like the idea of absolute truth, decided one day to believe that truth is relative. How convenient.

And the masses followed.

Proof?
Is there any proof that truth is relative? No. This is a just philosophical belief. Not a proven axiom of life.

Getting back to the irony, Frank Peretti addresses the point of tension in statements like "there is no absolute truth". To say there is no absolute truth, is to say that the statement itself is not absolute.

Ravi Zacharias says that statement includes itself or excludes itself. If the statement includes itself, then that idea itself is not absolutely true. If it excludes itself, then it is an absolute truth, and therefore contradicts itself. Mind-bending.

So who duped us? And why are we so easily duped?

Majority Rules
I actually had someone tell me what their ethics professor taught: "if the majority believes something is morally acceptable, then it is morally acceptable." How many people today actually have swallowed this stuff -- hook, line, and sinker?

Okay, then. Let's just chuck our brains out the window. Is Mr. Ethics Professor telling us that if 10 guys decide it is okay to rape one woman, that it is morally acceptable? Oh please... I can almost hear the professor say, "No, actually it is wrong because the majority of society thinks it is wrong." So what if the majority of a society decided it was right? Where is the logic here?

The reason they shouldn't rape the woman is based on her intrinsic worth as a human being, not because of some subjective, changing mood of the masses.

You caught me there... I guess I am assuming that the worth of individuals is an absolute.

One of My Favorite Worship Songs

2008-04-02T13:37:00.006-04:00

Of course this is my opinion, but I love this song: Hosanna by Paul Baloche. You can listen to it at the Leadworship website. Here are the lyrics:

Praise is rising, eyes are turning to You, we turn to You
Hope is stirring, hearts are yearning for You, we long for You
'Cause when we see You, we find strength to face the day
In Your Presence all our fears are washed away, washed away

Hosanna, hosanna
You are the God Who saves us, worthy of all our praises
Hosanna, hosanna
Come have Your way among us
We welcome You here, Lord Jesus

Hear the sound of hearts returning to You, we turn to You
In Your Kingdom broken lives are made new, You make us new
'Cause when we see You, we find strength to face the day
In Your Presence all our fears are washed away, washed away

Hosanna, hosanna
You are the God Who saves us, worthy of all our praises
Hosanna, hosanna
Come have Your way among us
We welcome You here, Lord Jesus

Hope in God

2008-03-24T18:24:00.008-04:00

This is a song I felt compelled to write to inspire us to Hope in God. You can listen to a ROUGH recording of the song here (and sorry for the abrupt ending, it didn't convert properly).

The lyrics to the song are:

Hope in God - He is for you
Hope in God - He will answer you
Hope in God - He is with you
Hope in God - He will rescue you

When troubles surround me
Problems press in on me
They whisper into my ear
There’s no way out

Like a ship in the raging sea
Waves of life crash in over me
But I won’t fear the enemy
’Cuz I have a hope – a living hope

Hope in God - He is for you
Hope in God - He will answer you
Hope in God - He is with you
Hope in God - He will rescue you

This hope is the anchor
For the tired and storm-tossed soul
He will lavish His grace upon you
And you will overcome

He’s given His Spirit
A pledge for eternity
To pour out the Father’s love
Into our hearts - our weary hearts

Hope is for the Soul, Like Faith is for the Spirit

2008-02-28T14:46:00.004-05:00

It's amazing to me how many times in Scripture, the term hope is connected to the soul. I think it is apparent that God wants us to prosper more than spiritually. John wrote in his third letter: Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers.

And interestingly, Paul wrote: "These three remain: faith, hope and love..." I've always considered love to be so important, and faith, too. But I've never even considered the importance of hope. Hope is mentioned 20 times in Psalms, and more than 120 times in the rest of Scripture.

Apparently, God wants us to have hope, and gives us GREAT reason to hope, and does this because He wants more than just our spirits and minds to prosper.

I wonder too, if sometimes we struggle in areas of faith, because we've lost sight of our reasons to have hope. Our soul struggles, and consequently, faith is a more challenging hurdle.

Lam 3:21-22 This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. 22 The LORD'S lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, For His compassions never fail. (NASB)

Leadership Thought

2007-12-11T13:48:00.002-05:00

It seems there are two things God isn't really happy about in regards to aspirations toward leadership.

The first is "ambition":

Romans 2:6,8 says that God will render wrath and indignation upon those who are selfishly ambitious. Ouch!
1 Peter 5:5,6 says God is against those who exalt themselves, and we need to humble ourselves and He would exalt us in the right time.

The second is "reluctance".

Boy did God become angry with Moses when he asked God to deliver Israel through someone else because he didn't feel qualified (Exodus 4:10-14).
And God told Jeremiah not to disqualify himself because he was a youth and he was afraid (Jeremiah 1:7-8).

So what does the Lord want? Apparently His timing is not our own, and we must cultivate a heart of patience (waiting) and humility for the when and if. Additionally, the Lord wants us to be a willing vessel. Many times when we think we can do it, He says, "no you can't". And then when we think we cannot do it, He says, "yes you can".

Thus, it seems He wants us to wait (when we think we can), and to be willing (when we think we can't).

Faith Romances God

2007-12-05T13:52:00.001-05:00

I came across this intriguing quote from Winkie Pratney in his message, "Little Crumbs for Little Dogs". (You can subscribe to his podcast here and download it through the iTunes store.) What do you think is meant by this quote: "Faith romances God"?

Frustration vs. Patience

2007-12-04T15:55:00.002-05:00

I was recently involved in some plumbing projects in my house. Can I say "I hate plumbing!"? As I was buying materials from a local hardware store, the owner gave me one piece of advice: "Be patient."

Many times when I have embarked on house-projects-that-shouldn't-take- very-long-but-always-do, I would find myself in the place of being overwhelmed and frustrated. But after this man gave me advice about being patient, I found, that even in very overwhelming circumstances, I didn't have to get frustrated. I came to the conclusion that "frustration is an enemy, patience is an ally."

Sure it took me 9 days to replace my shower diverter -- because not only was the diverter bad, but I discovered the walls in the shower needed replaced because of water damage -- but I got the job done well. Since then I've had several major repair jobs (house and vehicle) all at once, that took extremely longer than they should have, but I've found patience is a friend in these overwhelming circumstances.

(Now you know why I hire so much work out!)

Brokenness

2007-12-04T15:17:00.002-05:00

It seems that Jesus has a special place in his heart for people who are broken, crushed, down-and-out. "The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit" (Psalm 34) and "I dwell... with the contrite and lowly of spirit" (Isaiah 57). He was with Joseph during 13 years of cruel isolation and slavery, and showed favor to him in a place of affliction and suffering. And with David: he was anointed as king, and then spent years on the run, hiding out in caves from a king that would destroy him.

Many times we are in crushing circumstances that are beyond our control. And the natural tendency is to kick, scream, fight, vindicate ourselves... and run from brokenness. But this is the very place we will find the embrace of God. He is near to the brokenhearted. He is with the contrite (crushed) and lowly of spirit. And many times we feel like He is so far away. A friend recently shared this verse (his life-verse) with me: "So now, descendants of Jacob, trust in your God and return to him. Be loyal and just, and wait patiently for your God to act" (Hosea 12:6).

"Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for God is with me" (Psalm 23).

Self-Centered Christianity?

2007-11-02T11:31:00.005-04:00

I first came across this quote in a John Piper book, but you can check out the source of it here.

I suddenly saw that … someone could use all the language of evangelical Christianity, and yet the center was fundamentally the self, my need of salvation. And God is auxiliary to that... I also saw that quite a lot of evangelical Christianity can easily slip, can become centered in me and my need of salvation, and not … in the glory of God.
-- Bishop Lesslie Newbigin, Missionary to India

I'm interested in any feedback on this comment.

Wait a Minute Guys -- I was just Kidding!

2007-11-01T13:45:00.002-04:00

Did the disciples of Jesus make up the story of his resurrection? The interesting thing is, they were all persecuted or killed because of their "story". None of them said, "Okay, wait a minute guys. It was all a big joke! You don't need to take it THAT seriously."

Check out what happened to these followers of Jesus:

James, the brother of John - Beheaded
Thomas - Speared to death
Simon the Zealot - Crucified
Bartholemew - Flayed with knives
Andrew - Crucified
Matthew - Speared to death
Philip - Crucified and Stoned
James, the son of Alpheus - Sawn in pieces
Peter - Crucified (upside down)
Jude - Shot with arrows
Stephen - Stoned to death
James, brother of Jesus - Thrown down from the temple and stoned

"He would not have preached the honor and glory of the cross, if he feared the death of the cross." -- Andrew

But My Situation is Different!

2007-10-31T15:29:00.002-04:00

"No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it" 1 Cor. 10:13.

No temptation has overtaken you, but such as is common to man. Your situation is not exceptional. People all over the world have gone through what we are facing. Sometimes our enemy wants us to think that our situation is worse than what others have faced. But many have faced it, and many have triumphed.

God is faithful. When we think that our situation is exceptional, we are choosing to believe that God is not faithful. We feel that God is being harder on us than on others.

Who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able. He will not allow us to be tempted beyond our ability. But do we allow ourselves to be tempted beyond what we are able? Sometimes the temptations we face are not the ones God allows, but the temptations we allow. Should a recovering alcoholic go to a bar? "Flee immorality" (1 Cor. 6:18). "Flee from idolatry" (1 Cor. 10:14). "Flee the love of money" (1 Tim. 6:11). "Flee youthful lusts" (2 Tim. 22).

God will provide a way of escape. He will provide a way of escape for the temptations He allows. The only way of escape for the temptations we allow is ESCAPE -- FLEE. But the temptations God allows? He says we will be able to endure them. The temptations we cannot endure, then, are probably temptations that we've allowed.

When God Cannot Be Found

2007-10-31T15:11:00.002-04:00

Isaiah writes, "Seek the Lord while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts..." (ch.55:6,7a NASB). It's interesting that he says we need to forsake "our way" and "our thoughts", because (he explains later) God's ways and thoughts are infinitely higher than ours. To put our ways and thoughts before His, is perhaps a type of wickedness and unrighteousness called "presumption".

Why does he say, "Seek the Lord while He may be found"? Maybe because sometimes when we work our way out through natural and logical reasoning, we end up far away from the will of God. And many times we can make decisions where there is no reversal, no going back. By then, it is ridiculous to seek the Lord about the matter. Sure God can work all things together for good, but it would have been best had we sought His direction before we proceeded. We could have avoided some nasty consequences.

Paul writes about it this way, "... a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised [examined]. But he who is spiritual appraises [examines] all things..." (1 Cor. 2:14-15a). The context here is that the spiritual man examines everything from a spiritual (rather than natural) perspective. How do we examine things from spiritual perspective? By seeking God while He may be found, and by calling on Him while He is near - gaining His perspective before we try to work everything out in our natural and fleshly thinking. Because by then, it may be too late!

Finger Painting

2007-10-30T09:56:00.002-04:00

Little Johnny and Julie were hard at work at their newspaper-covered kitchen table. One big sheet of heavy paper stretched between them as their shared canvas. Plastic bottles of paint stood on both sides of the white paper.

Johnny painted a blue cloud with purple lightning coming down. Julie painted an orange Mommy. He painted a yellow snake in a brown tree. She painted a green Daddy pushing a red baby stroller. He painted purple and blue guns. She painted pink and red hearts. He painted brown Indians shooting arrows. She painted green and orange stars.

The buzzer announced the end of their painting time. Mom strode into the kitchen, initiating Project Cleanup. She set their masterpiece on the sunlit counter with a smile. In the bathroom she took off their plastic smocks, and cleaned the paint off of the faces, arms, fingers, and hair of her newly created Indian children. Now how did Johnny’s blue paint end up in Julie’s hair? she wondered. And that’s Julie’s red paint above Johnny’s eyebrows!

Mom clicked on the washing machine and headed back to the kitchen. She cleaned off the kitchen table... and chairs... and floor... and how did it get on the ceiling! Only later did she notice the colorful hand print on her blouse...

As a Branch church, we are called to relationships. This is not an option. “Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too” (Phil. 2:4 NLT). “We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves” (Rom. 15:1 ESV).

Relationships are the finger paintings of life – and they can be messy. No, the children didn’t mean to get paint everywhere. It just happened while they focused on their finger paintings. Relationships are like that. In our best intentions, we end up smearing paint on places it doesn’t belong.

As long as there are relationships, there will be messes – and opportunities for offense. There is no guarantee that in the church we will not be painted upon. Actually, we could guarantee the opposite. Is it because people in the body are trying to get their paint on us or our side of the canvas? Is it because they are intentionally hurtful? Probably not. Maybe opinionated. Maybe poor communicators. Maybe unaware of another’s sensitivity to an issue. Maybe still growing up into Christ (Eph. 4:15). But not usually intentionally hurtful.

As intrinsic as messes are to finger painting, misunderstandings are to relationships – because none of us know everything. None of us can know all that could be hurtful to another. Jesus doesn’t require us to be perfect in knowledge, but perfect in love (Matt. 5:48, 1 Jn. 4:12,17,18).

The Message paraphrases Paul’s words like this: “Love never gives up. Love cares more for others than for self... [Love] doesn't keep score of the sins of others... [It] puts up with anything, trusts God always, always looks for the best... [and] keeps going to the end” (1 Cor. 13).

Because relationships are the finger paintings of life, misunderstandings will occur in a relationship based church. Thankfully, God is the Perfect Parent who knows how to clean up after our messes. He doesn’t notice the imperfections of our paintings, nor is He hindered by us getting paint everywhere. He takes pride in the fact that we are painting our masterpieces together for Him.

C.S. Lewis' thoughts on Right and Wrong

2007-05-01T15:01:00.001-04:00

Excerpted from Mere Christianity.

"Every one has heard people quarreling. Sometimes it sounds funny and sometimes it sounds merely unpleasant; but however it sounds, I believe we can learn something from listening to the kind of things they say. They say things like this: 'How'd you like it if anyone did the same to you?' - 'That's my seat, I was there first' - 'Leave him alone, he isn't doing you any harm' - 'Why should you shove in first?' - 'Give me a bit of your orange, I gave you a bit of mine' - 'Come on, you promised.' People say things like that every day, educated people as well as uneducated, and children as well as grown-ups.

"Now what interests me about all these remarks is that the man who makes them is not merely saying that the other man's behaviour does not happen to please him. He is appealing to some kind of standard of behaviour which he expects the other man to know about. And the other man very seldom replies: 'To hell with your standard.' Nearly always he tries to make out that what he has been doing does not really go against the standard, or that if it does there is some special excuse. He pretends there is some special reason in this particular case why the person who took the seat first should not keep it, or that things were quite different when he was given the bit of orange, or, that something has turned up which lets him off keeping his promise. It looks, in fact, very much as if both parties had in mind some kind of Law or Rule of fair play or decent behaviour or morality or whatever you like to call it, about which they really agreed. And they have. If they had not, they might, of course, fight like animals, but they could not quarrel in the human sense of the word. Quarreling means trying to show that the other man is in the wrong. And there would be no sense in trying to do that unless you and he had some sort of agreement as to what Right and Wrong are; just as there would be no sense in saying that a footballer had committed a foul unless there was some agreement about the rules of football."