Christmas - Grace has a Face

The Wise Men searched for and found the Child...

Hope has hands, freedom has feet

Truth will stand, the Word will speak

The holy and lowly will finally embrace

For Love has a heartbeat and Grace has a face...

-- Phil Cross

~~~~~~~~~~~

All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and Him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other.

God put the world square with Himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins.

God has given us the task of telling everyone what He is doing.

We're Christ's representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into  work of making things right between them.

We are speaking for Christ Himself now: Become friends with God; He's already a friend with you.

How? You ask. In Christ, God put the wrong on Him who never did anything wrong, so we could be put right with God.

-- 2 Corinthians 5:18-21

Abundant Life: God With Us - Alexandra Hoover

Debbie Hayes sent me this powerful thought. I decided to share it....


"A desire to rely on our doing versus God's faithfulness will diminish our experience of God's presence.

"God, however, doesn't want us to live led by the rush of life. Instead, He's inviting us to trust in His overwhelming presence to guide us.

"As we move through our day and invite Him into the spaces that need Him so desperately, let us remember that as we draw near to our God, we are inviting His presence to guide us with love.

"This is abundant life: God with us, a mighty and overwhelming presence."

                                                   --Alexandra Hoover

How to lose and how to save

What do I live and breathe?

Psalm 34:1-7 The Message (Paraphrase)


I bless God every chance I get. My lungs expand with His praise.
I live and breathe God...Hear this and be happy. Join me in spreading the good news.

Together let's get the word out.

God met me  more than half way.

He freed me from my anxious fears.

Look at Him - give Him your warmest smile.
Never hide your feelings from Him.

When I was desperate, I called out, and God got me out of a tight spot.

God's angels set up a circle of protection around us while we pray.

If you want to be happy in a trillion ways...

If you want to be happy in a million ways,
          For the holidays you can't beat home sweet home....



The joy of a person on the way home....

Ever notice how a person heading home just acts differently. A lighter step; a broader and quicker smile; an obvious buoyancy; a more pleasant attitude, even in unpleasant circumstances. Maybe even a certain glow. A sudden sparkling uncalled-for laugh.



"What are you doing for Christmas?"

"Oh, I'm going home."



Maybe, and likely, all the memories of holidays at home are not great ones. Maybe even some would be better forgotten. But it still rings true and often we can detect a self-conscious satisfaction in the words: "Oh, me? I'm going home."



We all want to go home.



God instilled that yearning in us as certainly as He gave us a desire for food and water.



I read on a Christmas card...hearts come home for Christmas....

And what a difference the wording makes. We tell our friends we are going home. We tell our mother or Father...and  God.... we are coming home.



The words of the popular gospel song: "Lord, I'm coming home."

Open wide thine arms of love.....Lord, I'm coming home.
Look around. Some of us live the joy of a person on the way home..... He has called to us and brought us to the right road. We are on our way.


Nothing can go wrong. We are on our way home.


Words from Hound of Heaven, by Francis Thompson...near the end of the poem...

All which I took from thee I did but take,

Not for thy harms,

But just that thou might'st seek it in My arms.

All which thy child's mistake

Fancies as lost, I have stored for thee at home:

Rise, clasp My hand, and come.

All we ever really wanted in this life is right there in His arms, waiting for us to
"come home."



Rise, clasp My hand, and come...come home....




My great, great, great, great grandparents (1780's) sang this song:

Come, ye sinners, poor and needy

Weak and wounded, sick and sore

Jesus ready stands to save you

Full of pity, love and power.

I will arise and go to Jesus

He will embrace me in His arms

In the arms of my dear Savior

O there are ten thousand charms

Our ancestors understood it!...Let not conscience make you linger, nor of fitness fondly dream...all the fitness He requireth is to feel your need of Him...
[It's all so profoundly simple...]

and this warning:  If you  tarry till you're better, you will never come at all...!
[because we can never be good enough]



Rise, clasp My hand, and come....come home....




P.S. Until recently in world history ten thousand was considered a huge number.
Our ancestors had no concept of millions, billions, and certainly not trillions.
So in Amazing Grace we sing "ten thousand years," and in the song above, "ten thousand charms." We could modernize them by singing "ten trillion years" and "ten trillion charms," but we probably won't.

Home for the Holidays says "in a million ways." It is a newer song. But we could
change it to say "trillion ways"....but we probably won't.



You can give it a try...

'Cause no matter how far away you roam,
If you want to be happy in a trillion ways,
For the holidays - you can't beat home sweet home.

There is No One like our God!

"I am God, and there is none like  Me.

I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times,

what is still to come.

I say, 'My purpose will stand and I will do all that I please.'"

  --Isaiah 46:9-10

I just can't get this passage off my mind. Isn't it wonderful to know who is really in charge? It brings me  sense of profound peace and exhilarating freedom! What about you?

Which is worse? - From Jerry Bridges

It is just as important to trust God as it is to obey Him.

When we disobey God we defy His authority and despise His holiness.

But when we fail to trust God we doubt His sovereignty and question His goodness.



(I am guilty of both...but I have tasted His goodness so much and so often that I don't have any excuse for that one....and He has demonstrated His authority and holiness so often that I don't have any excuse for that either!  Just keep thanking Him for 1 John 1:9......"If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us
 our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness"!)

To Soar or Not to Soar!

Those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. 

They will soar on wings like eagles. 

They will run and not grow weary. 

They will walk and not faint.

Isaiah 40:31

Familiar passage - astonishing promise!

Father, I feel so weak and empty today. I do put my hope in You- You are all I have. Please renew my strength - I want to SOAR!

How to Start the Day!

"When Christ shall come with shouts of acclamation 

and take me home, what joy shall fill my heart! 

Then I shall bow in humble adoration, and there proclaim, 

'My God, how great Thou art!'"  *

No reason we can't start doing that today - right here and now!

Humble adoration...."My God, how great Thou art!"

(maybe all adoration of our great God will always be 'humble' - 
how could it be anything else?)

*From How Great Thou Art by Carl Boberg, 1886

What did David Understand? Ed Bulkley

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus
                (1 Thessalonians 5:18).


Thanksgiving is ultimately a statement of faith.

It is tangible evidence that we believe in the goodness of God regardless of the circumstances of life. That's why we are urged to "give thanks to the LORD for He is good; His love endures forever" (1 Chronicles 16:34).

God is good. He doesn't want your suffering to be meaningless; he will reward the faith of the person who said, "though he slay me, yet will I hope in him (Job 13:15).

What can you thank the Lord for right now?

Your health? Or perhaps a child who has been a source of joy for years? A car that works?

Get a sheet of paper and start writing a list of things to thank God for. Do it right now. Put this heading on it: Things I thank God for.

Look around you...the miracle of good vision, good friends, family members, running water, the refrigerator, hands that work, feet, indoor plumbing, birds, trees, sunshine, snow, rain, a hot shower, good roads, a job, the ability to read, songs, a child's laughter, mountain streams, love, a roof over your head....

Thank God out loud! Tell others how good He is. David learned the joy of thanking God in the presence of others.

He wrote, "I will give you thanks in the seat of assembly; among throngs of people I will praise you" (Psalm 35:18)

Gratitude is a healing medicine. It is almost impossible to overflow with thanksgiving and to remain wounded at the same time. Make thanksgiving a habit by practicing it constantly.

-- From Only God Can Heal the Wounded Heart,
                 by Ed Bulkley

Voices from Above

I ran across some reminders of Christ's last days on earth. John 12. I hadn't read these words in some time and the picture before me astonished me, as always, with the glorious truth of the incarnation.

Jesus had been speaking of His death. There was a crowd present -- including maybe "the Greeks" who had come to Jerusalem for the Passover and who had told Philip, "We would like to see Jesus."

(Philip went to Andrew and then both of them told Jesus. But apparently there were many others around).

Christ says: "My heart is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father, save me from this hour?' No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!"

Then a voice came from heaven, "I have glorified it, and will glorify it again."

It is easy to recall the voice from heaven when Jesus was baptized by John. "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."

And at the Mount of Transfiguration, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!"

The first time we are told about the Voice was at the beginning of Christ's ministry. The second time was during his ministry. Now this third time is at the end.

I had to re-read the words in John12 several times. They are packed with meaning.

There is no way we can ever comprehend the cost of what Jesus accomplished on the cross.

So often we think of it in terms of what is cost to save us. But here we get a glimpse of the higher purpose -- "Glorify your name."

I think we often forget that Christ's final goal was not our salvation, but the glorification of His Father.

It's the same for us. The famous Westminster Catechism Question #1 - "What is the chief end of man?" Answer: "The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever."

Another reminder that Jesus' cruel death not only saved us, but "glorified His Father's name."

He was deeply troubled, and yet the glorification of His Father was uppermost in His mind.

Isn't there a message for us here? When we are in the depths of trouble and crying out to God, shouldn't we be praying "Father, in this matter, glorify your name."

"In this time of great sorrow, Father, glorify your name."

"In this time of great anxiety and fear, Father, glorify your name."

Father, glorify your name in me.....through me.....today....right now....always....Father, glorify your name. Wherever I go today and whatever I do -- do as you will with my life -- just please, in me, glorify your name!

Memoir of McCheyne

From Memoir of Rev. Robert McCheyne (1813-1843)

This letter from Rev. McCheyne to "My dear friend" was written in March, 1840.


Look at Romans 5:19: For just as through the act of disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man many will be made righteous.


We had no hand in Adam's sin, and yet the guilt of it comes upon us.We did not put out our hand to the fruit, and yet the sin and misery has been laid at our door.

 In the same way, "by the obedience of Christ, many were made righteous." Christ is the glorious One who stood for many. His perfect garment is sufficient to cover you. You had no hand in His obedience. You were not alive when He came into the world and lived and died; and yet, before God in His perfect obedience, you may stand before God righteous. This is all my covering in the sight of a holy God.

I feel infinitely ungodly in myself--in God's eye, like a serpent or a toad--and yet, when I stand in Christ alone, I feel that God sees no sin in me and loves me freely.


This same righteousness is free to you. To be as white and clean on your soul as on mine. O do not sleep another night without it.

I must not weary you. One word more. Look at Revelation 22:17. Sweet, sweet words. "Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life."


The last invitation in the Bible -- Christ's parting words to a world of sinners.


Anyone that pleases may take this glorious way of salvation. Dear friend, be persuaded by a fellow-worm not to put off another moment. Behold the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sins of the world.

You are sitting, like Hagar, within reach of the well. May the Lord open your eyes, and show you all that is in Christ. I pray for you, that you may spiritually see Jesus, and be glad--that you may go to Him and find rest.


Farewell, Yours in the Lord.

Life Lesson from Beauty and the Beast

From Beauty and the Beast

The main thing:

Sometimes

something or someone

has to be loved before

   he can become lovable.....

and we know that from personal experience...because...

He first loved us

(I John 4:19)


and so that's the way we love others....

-Sarah Young - The Great Reversal

As you wait attentively in My Presence, the Light of the knowledge of My Glory shines upon you.

This radiant knowledge transcends all understanding.

It transforms every fiber of your being: renewing your mind, cleansing your heart, invigorating your body.

Open yourself fully to My Presence: be awed by My glorious being.

Try to imagine what I gave up when I came into your world as a baby.

I set aside My Glory so that I could identify with mankind. I accepted the limitations of infancy under the most appalling conditions -- a filthy stable.

That was a dark night for Me, even though angels lit up the sky proclaiming "Glory!" to awestruck shepherds.

When you sit quietly with Me, the process I went through is reversed in your experience.

As you identify with Me heaven's vistas open up before you -- granting you glimpses of My Glory.

I became poor so that you might become rich.

Sing hallelujahs to My Holy Name!

   -- From Jesus Calling, by Sarah Young

  The Son is the Radiance of the Father, the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful Word.  Hebrews 1:3

The best deal in the universe -- Ann Coulter

These lines are from Ann Coulter's column 01/06/2010. The article was written in response to the wide criticism of Brit Hume when he told Tiger Woods that he could find forgiveness and redemption in the gospel message of Jesus Christ.



By Ann Coulter.....

Someone mentioned Christianity on television recently and liberals reacted with their usual howls of rage and blinking incomprehension.

On a Fox News panel discussing Tiger Woods, Brit Hume said, perfectly accurately:

The extent to which he can recover, it seems to me, depends on his faith. He is said to be a Buddhist. I don't think that faith offers the kind of forgiveness and redemption that is offered by the Christian faith. So, my message to Tiger would be, "Tiger, turn to the Christian faith and you can make a total recovery and be a great example to the world."

Hume's words, being 100% factually correct, sent liberals into a tizzy of sputtering rage, once again illustrating liberals' copious ignorance of Christianity. (Also illustrating the words of the Bible: "How is it you do not understand me when I speak? It is because you cannot bear to listen to my words." John 8:43)

Most perplexing was columnist Dan Savage's indignant accusation that Hume was claiming that Christianity "offers the best deal--it gives you the get-out-of-adultery-free card that other religions can't."

In fact, that's exactly what Christianity does. It's the best deal in the universe.

God sent his Son to get the crap beaten out of him, die for our sins and rise from the dead. If you believe that, you're in. Your sins are washed away from you--sins even worse than adultery!--because of the cross.


"He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross." Colossians 2:14.

Surely you remember the cross, liberals--the symbol banned by the ACLU lawsuits from public property throughout the land?

Christianity is simultaneously the easiest religion in the world and the hardest religion in the world.

In the no-frills, economy-class version, you don't need a church, a teacher, candles, incense, special food or clothing; you don't need to pass a test or prove yourself in any way. All you'll need is a Bible (in order to grasp the amazing deal you're getting) and probably a water baptism, though even that's disputed.

You can be washing the dishes or walking your dog or just sitting there minding your business hating Susan Sarandon and accept that God sent His only son to die for your sins and rise from the dead...and you're in!

"Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." Romans 10:9

If you do that, every rotten, sinful thing you've ever done is gone from you. You're every bit as much a Christian as the pope or Billy Graham.

No fine print, no "your mileage may vary," no blackout dates. God ought to do a TV spot: "I'm God Almighty, and if you can find a better deal in the universe than the one I'm offering, take it!"

The Gospel makes this point approximately 1000 times. Here are a few examples at random:

"For God so loved the world he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16

"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God." Ephesians 2:8

"For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23

Christianity is also the hardest religion in the world because, if you believe Christ died for your sins and rose from the dead, you have no choice but to give your life entirely over to Him. No more sexual promiscuity, no lying, no cheating, no stealing, no killing inconvenient old people or unborn babies--no doing what all the other kids do.

And no more caring what the world thinks of you--because, as Jesus warned in a prophecy constantly fulfilled by liberals--The world will hate you.

With Christianity your sins are forgiven, the slate is wiped clean and your eternal life is guaranteed through nothing you did yourself, even though you don't deserve it. It's the best deal in the universe.

A Sword for the Lord - C H Spurgeon

"A Sword for the LORD and for Gideon!"  Judges 7:20

Gideon ordered his men to do two things: Covering up a torch in an earthen pitcher, he had them, at an appointed signal, break the pitcher and let the light shine.

Then he had them blow the trumpet, crying, "A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!"

This is precisely what all Christians must do.

First, you must shine: Break the pitcher that conceals your light, throw aside the container that has been hiding your candle, and shine.

Let your light shine before men; let your good works be such that when men look at you, they will know that you have been with Jesus.

Then, there must be the sound, the blowing of the trumpet.

There must be active exertions for the gathering of sinners by proclaiming Christ crucified.

Take the Gospel to them.

Carry it to their door; put it in their path; do not allow them to escape it; blow the trumpet right against their ears.

Remember that the true battle-cry for the Church is Gideon's watch word, "A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!"

God must do it; it is His own work.

But we are not to be idle; He uses instruments -- "A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!"

If we only cry "A sword for the LORD" we will be guilty of idle presumption; and if we shout "A sword for Gideon!" alone, we shall display an idolatrous reliance on man: We must blend the two in perfect harmony: "A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!"

We can do nothing in ourselves, but we can do everything by the help of our God; let us, therefore, in His name, determine to go out personally and serve Him with our flaming torch of holy example and with our trumpet blast of sincere declaration and testimony, and God will be with us, and the enemy will be put to confusion, and the Lord of Hosts will reign forever and ever.

(A broken pitcher sheds more light!)

Sunrise/Sunset - From Spurgeon

For He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler (bird catcher) Psalm 91:3

God delivers His people from the snare of the fowler in two senses: From and out of.

First, He delivers them from the snare--He does not let them enter it; and secondly, if they should be caught in it, He delivers them out of it. The first promise is the most precious to some; the second is the best to others.

"He will deliver you from the snare" -- How? Trouble is often the means God uses to deliver us. God knows that our backsliding will soon end in our destruction, and He in mercy sends the rod. We say, "Lord, why is this?" not knowing that our trouble has been the means of delivering us from the greater evil. In this way many have been saved from ruin by their sorrows and their crosses.

At other times God keeps His people from the snare of the fowler by giving them great spiritual strength, so that when they are tempted to do evil they say, "How then can  I do this great wickedness and sin against God?"

But what a blessed thing it is if the believer shall, in an evil hour, come into the net, yet God will bring him out of it!

O backslider, be cast down but do not despair. Wanderer though you have been, hear what your Redeemer says: "Return, backsliding children, I will have mercy upon you."

But you say you cannot return, for you are a captive.

Then listen to the promise--"For He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler." You shall yet be brought out of all evil into which you have fallen, and though you shall never cease to repent of your ways, yet He who has loved you will not cast you away. He will receive you and give you joy and gladness, that the bones that He has broken may rejoice.

No bird of paradise shall die in the fowler's net.

                  --Charles Haddon Spurgeon, Morning, January 24.

Let Him Do It

Let Me help you get through this day....

     Because You are my help, I sing in the shadow of Your
       wings.

       My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me.
                                  (Psalm 63:7-8)

Yes, please help me through this day...and the next,
and the next.....

C H Spurgeon - How much do we owe? (The divine magnet!)

For the love of Christ controls us.

2 Corinthians 5:14

How much do you owe to my Lord?

Has He ever done anything for you? Has He forgiven your sins? Has He covered you with a robe of righteousness?

Has He set your feet upon a rock? Has He established your goings?

Has He prepared heaven for you? Has He prepared you for heaven?

Has He written your name in His Book of Life?

Has He given you countless blessings?

Then do something for Jesus that is worthy of His love.

Do not give a mere wordy offering to a dying Redeemer.

How will you feel when your Master comes if you have to confess that you did nothing for Him, but kept your love shut up, like a stagnant pool, neither flowing out to the poor nor to His work? 

Be done with that kind of love!

What do men think of love that never shows itself in action?

Who will accept a love so weak that it does not stir you to a single act of self-denial, generosity, heroism, or zeal?

Consider how He has loved you and given Himself for you.

Do you know then power of that love?

Then let it be like a rushing, mighty wind to your soul to sweep out the clouds of your worldliness and clear away the mists of sin.

For Christ's sake let this be the tongue of fire that sits upon you: For Christ's sake let this be the divine excitement, the heavenly empowerment to bear you up from earth, the divine spirit that will make you bold as lions and swift as eagles in your Lord's service.

Love should give wings to the feet of service and strength to the arms of industry.

Fixed on God with a constancy that is not to be shaken, determined to honor Him with a zeal that is not to be turned aside, and pressing on with a passion that doesn't waver, let us display the constraints of love for Jesus.

May the divine magnet draw us toward heaven itself.

 --  From Morning and Evening, by Charles H Spurgeon

Show me your faith without deeds,

and I will show you my faith by my deeds. 

James 2:18

C H Spurgeon - A Holy Calling

And those whom He predestined He also called.

Romans 8:30

In the second letter to Timothy, first chapter and ninth verse, we read these words: who saved us to a holy calling.

Now here is a touchstone by which we may test our calling. It is a "holy calling, not because of our works, but because of His own purpose and grace."

This calling forbids all trust in our own doings and turns us to Christ alone for salvation, but it afterwards purges us from dead works to serve the living and true God.

As He who called you is holy, so you must be holy.

If you are living in sin, you are not called, but if you are truly Christ's, you can say, "Nothing pains me so much as sin; I desire to be rid of it. Lord, help me to be holy."

Is this the longing of your heart? Is this the substance of your life toward God and His divine will?

Again, in Philippians 3:13-14 we are told of the "upward call of God in Christ Jesus." 

Is your calling an upward call? Has it refined your heart and focused it upon heavenly things? Has it elevated your hopes, your tastes, your desires? Has it raised the constant tenor of your life, so that you spend it with God and for God?

We find another test in Hebrews 3:1: "You who share in a heavenly calling."

"Heavenly calling" means a call from heaven.

If your call comes from man alone, you are uncalled.

Is your calling from God? Is it a call to heaven as well as from heaven?

Unless you are a stranger here, and heaven is your home, you have not been called with a heavenly calling, for those who have been called from heaven declare that they look for a city that has foundations, whose builder and maker is God, and they find themselves strangers and pilgrims on earth.

Is your calling holy, high, heavenly?

Then, beloved, you have been called of God, for such is the calling by which God calls His people.

Re-thinking Reincarnation

I ran into an old friend. She now believes in reincarnation. Her world view changes as quickly as a weather vane, yielding easily to the gusts of popular opinion.

I can't think of a philosophy that resists social progress toward goodness and the pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness for all of us as much as -- reincarnation.

So much of the world's population - Hinduism and Buddhism, and other eastern religions, sink and drown in despair because of this absurd notion that a man's actions in this life dictate the type of life he will be awarded, or punished with, in his next earthly life.

So if I, a believer in reincarnation, pass a homeless beggar, maybe a
cripple, or a leper, on the streets of Bombay, will I be prompted to help him?  No! He is getting what he deserved. In his former life he must have been so evil and cruel that now he is destined to spend this life in helpless degradation. He must not be helped! He must pay! It's the will of the gods...They have established and determined his position in society. Maybe he can be elevated in his next life......maybe not.....But it is not my job to help him here and now!

[Eastern religions do have a notion of alms or charity -- but these are ways of showing respect for the monks or nuns, or "spiritually developed persons". It is not charity as we think of it. The gifts are given to the religions leaders and they show a symbolic connection to the spiritual realm. They are to demonstrate humbleness and respect for religion in a secular society. The giving of alms assists in connecting the human to the monk or nun and what he or she represents. They are not designed to bring people out of poverty.]


On the other hand, the city governor, or the wealthy merchant, must
have been a truly good man in his previous life, and now he is being rewarded with a high position in society. So I must honor him! He is getting what he deserves as a good and honest man in his former life. I must not question him nor challenge his actions. He is not accountable to me.  The gods have elevated him because he was honest in an earlier (not current) life.

Do people today who throw around the word "reincarnation" with its aura of mystery, really think it through? [Like the phrase, "Thank my lucky stars..." What exactly does that mean?]

The poor beggar is likely not harming anybody, except for being an annoyance and irritation.  And the nobleman might be a serial killer.

What kind of society would we have here if we were believers in reincarnation?

Not a democracy, because reincarnation reinforces the power of the wealthy and elite over the poor and powerless, and does not do anything to alleviate the problems of the poor. It is a societal "strait jacket."

The seeds of democracy will not flourish in the poor soil of reincarnation.

And certainly there would be no space for equality nor protection of the law-- just a society where the rich and powerful always rule without restrictions and the poor are left in their misery.


FATALISM

Another word I hear often today -- fatalism. "I am a fatalist," my friend might say.

Fatalism is the teaching that there is a blind, impersonal force that directs all of human history and activity. Back of that force is no divine purpose, and no one, not even God, has any control over that force. We are simply swept long by its blind power -- as helpless
as someone swept in a raging torrent out to sea. There is no stopping it.

It is disturbing. When a great river overflows seasonally and destroys villages and thousands of lives, a fatalist will say (and we have all heard them say it), "It must have been the will of God!"

Year after year - the rains come down and the floods come up - and thousands suffer and die.

No, it is not God's will -- it is God's will that they learn to build a dam, move their homes, do what it takes to protect themselves and their families -- that is God's will, according to our Judea-Christian heritage.

Our own tradition is so different - our spiritual and historical ancestors (Abraham, Moses, David, Job, and the prophets, to list some) argued with God -- they confronted Him -- they demanded answers -- they thrust their fists in the air and challenged Him --

AND HE HEARD THEM! He did not turn His back. He treated them with dignity and respect, because we, His humble creatures, bear His image!

What we believe matters - not just to each of us - but to society as a whole. I am so thankful for my heritage as a Christian, and also for my heritage as an American.

We are the "home of the brave," largely because we are the "land of the free." 

We can fight back -- we can demand change -- even if it is to confront and challenge our God!

Yes, what we believe really matters -- the future of our country depends upon what we believe about God.

Fight On! from Charles Spurgeon

Charles H. Spurgeon says:

In every believer's heart there is a constant struggle between the old nature and the new. The old nature is very active and loses no opportunity of employing all the weapons in its deadly arsenal against newborn grace; while, on the other hand, the new nature is always on the lookout to resist and destroy its enemy.

Grace within us will employ prayer and faith and hope and love to cast out the evil; it takes to itself "the whole armor of God" and wrestles vigorously.

These two opposing natures will never stop struggling as long as we are in this world.

Bunyon's Christian fought Apollyon in a battle lasting 3 hours, but the battle of Christian with himself lasted all the way from the entry Gate to the River Jordan.

The enemy is so securely entrenched within us that he can never be completely driven out while we are in this body: But although we are closely followed, and often in fierce conflict, we have an Almighty helper, Jesus, the Captain of our salvation, who is always with us and assures us that we will eventually be "more than conquerors" through Him.

With such assistance the newborn nature is more than a match for its enemies.

Are you fighting with the adversary today? Are Satan, the world, and the flesh all against you?

Do not be discouraged nor dismayed. Fight on! For God Himself is with you. Jehovah Nissi is your banner, and Jehovah Rophi is the healer of your wounds. Do not fear; you will overcome, for who can defeat Omnipotence? Fight on, looking to Jesus, and although the conflict is long and tough, the victory will be sweet, and the promised reward will be glorious.

Getting the Help We Need - C H Spurgeon

I am the One who helps you, declares the LORD.

   -- Isaiah 41:14

This morning let us hear the Lord Jesus speak to each one of us:

"I will help you.

It is but a small thing for Me, your God, to help you.

Consider what I have done already.

What! Not help you?

Why, I bought you with My blood.

What! Not help you?

I have died for you; and if I have done the greater, will I not do the less?

Help you? It is the least thing I will ever do for you.

I have done more will do more.

Before the world began I chose you. I made a covenant for you, I laid aside My Glory and became a man for you; I gave up My life for you; and if I did all this, I will surely help you now.

In helping you I am giving you what I have bought for you already.

If you had need of a thousand times as much help, I would give it to you; you require little compared with what I am ready to give.

It is much for you to need, but it is nothing for Me to bestow.

Help you?

Fear not! If there were an ant at the door of your granary asking for help, it would not ruin you to give him a handful of your wheat; and you are nothing but a tiny insect at the door of My all-sufficiency.

I will help you.

O my soul, is this not enough? Do you need more strength than the omnipotence of the united Trinity? Do you want more wisdom than exists in the Father, more love than displays itself in the Son, or more power than is manifest in the influences of the Spirit?

Bring here your empty pitcher! Surely this well will fill it.

Hurry, gather up your wants, and bring them here -- your emptiness, your woes, your needs.

Behold, this river of God is full for your supply; what else can you desire?

Go forth, my soul, in this your might.

The Eternal God is your helper!"

   -- From Morning and Evening, by C H Spurgeon

Who knows the most about evil? From C S Lewis

From Mere Christianity, by C. S. Lewis


....as I said, the right direction leads not only to peace but to knowledge. When a man is getting better he understands more and more clearly the evil that is still left in him. When a man is getting worse he understands his own badness less and less. A moderately bad man knows he is not very good: a thoroughly bad man thinks he is all right.

This is common sense really. You understand sleep when you are awake, not while you are sleeping. You can see mistakes in arithmetic when your mind is working properly: while you are making them you cannot see them. You can understand the nature of drunkenness when you are sober, not when you are drunk.

Good people know about good and evil; bad people don't know about either.

Good Grief...is this guy nuts?

I'm thinking about a 'not-so-old' song.... by Phil Vassar, about 10 years ago.

The kids screaming, the phone ringing

Dogs barking at the mailman bringing

That stack of bills overdue

Good morning, baby, how are you?

Got a half hour, a quick shower

Take a drink of milk, but the milk's gone sour

My funny face makes you laugh

Twist the top on and I put it back

There goes the washing machine

Baby, don't kick it

I promise I'll fix it

With about a million other things

Well, it's OK, it's so nice

It's just another day in paradise

Well, there's no place that I'd rather be

Well, it's two hearts

And one dream

I wouldn't trade it for anything

And I ask the Lord every night

For just another day in paradise.

Just another day in paradise? Is this guy nuts? His life is a complete mess....he put the sour milk back in the refrigerator! Can't pay his bills....Bunch of kids and the washing machine is broken....What gives him the right to be so happy? 

Why can't he see how miserable his life is...poor, pitiful man....almost makes you want to cry to see how blinded he is to the facts...well, I guess 'ignorance is bliss!'

Sometimes I wish I could be more like him!

Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content.     (Philippians 4:11 NKJV)

I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances (NIV)

Actually I don't have a sense of needing anything personally. I've learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I've found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am. (The Message)

And for an old (700 years ago) translation by Wycliffe:  I have learned to be sufficient in which things I am. I say that as for need, I have learned in which things I am, sufficient to be.


Paul was in prison when he wrote these words.  Sometimes I live in my own self-designed and self-constructed prison of cheerless ingratitude.....

I guess I need to be more like that poor, pitiful man with the miserable life!

More quotes from Anne of Green Gables

Marilla Cuthbert: You set your heart too much on frivolous things and then crash down into despair when you don't get them.
Anne: I know. I can't help flying up on the wings of anticipation. It's as glorious as soaring through a sunset...almost pays for the thud.
Marilla: Well, maybe it does. But I'd rather walk calmly along and do without the flying and the thud.

Anne: I feel as though someone has handed me the moon... and I don't know exactly what to do with it.

Anne: It's such a splendid day! I pity people who aren't born yet for missing it. They may have good days, of course, but they can never have this one.

Anne: Kindred spirits are not as scarce as I used to think. Its splendid to find there are so many in the world.

Quoteworthy - Short Thoughts to Start the Day

Let them that love You be as the sun when it rises in its strength.... (Judges 5:31)


The sun when it rises....

shining, dependable, powerful, illuminating, enlightening, life-sustaining, growth-producing, necessary for life, predictable, visible everywhere, warm, adding vitality and splendor to the sky, reminding us of God Himself, the Light of the world, responding to our shouts of "encore"!

unstoppable... {and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it}

The last phrase of the verse (Judges 5:31): Then the land had peace forty years.


                                      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Random quotes:

D. L. Moody was once asked, "Are you filled with the Holy Spirit?"
He replied, "Oh yes, but sometimes I leak."

Albert Einstein: There are two ways to live: One is to live as though there were no such things as miracles, and the other way is to live as though everything is a miracle."  

Remember 2012? - The world was going to end!

These comments are from Chuck Colson's Breakpoint, 11/03/09:

Regarding the programs on the History Channel, with predicting that life as we know it will end December 21, 2012...

Why? Last day listed on the Mayan "long count" calendar. "That calendar marks what the Maya--a now non-existent civilization--regarded as the end of the present cycle of creation."

"What makes this fact rise above the level of a historical curiosity is, first of all, the Maya's astronomical prowess. They charted the movements of celestial bodies with an accuracy unmatched until the invention of the telescope and, in some instances, not until the 20th century."

"...according to archaeologists, the Maya themselves never said anything about what would happen that day" [just that the present cycle would end].

"So why are people so anxious about the day? Probably because, until realitivity recently, many people, like the psalmist, "knew where our help came from, and wouldn't fear even if the mountains fell into the sea." Then that faith in the biblical God was replaced by a faith in human prowess and, eventually, faith in nothing.

"Well, Western Culture might have lost its faith, but folks have not lost their anxieties. So since we are no longer willing to embrace the ancient faith, many look for solace or explanation in other ancient faiths, or at least new-age versions of these faiths.

"So we are told that the ancient Maya, the Hope Indians, and the Chinese text of I Ching all predict that 2012 will be a time of "extraordinary shift." (But these documents don't say that at all--it's all hype.)

"What's (really) going on here is the idea that we live in a random and unintelligible universe, and that's more terrifying than the cataclysms predicted for the year 2012. So we grasp at straws, or misinterpret obscure texts, or we despair.

"But there is a third alternative -- real faith. Christians know that God is working out His purposes in history, and that faith removes all anxieties."

[Note: Often programs on the History Channel misrepresent history in other ways. I have heard them talk about the Maya civilization being destroyed by the Spanish conquerors -- this is false --the Mayas and their culture disappeared 500 years before the Spanish arrived! We don't know how or why they disappeared -- its one of those 'mysteries of history.' Glorya]

The Gospel of Mark (14) - Review of Chapter 1

This concludes our study of Chapter One of the Gospel of Mark.


So far....

We looked at ancient data describing Mark as a secretary and translator for the Apostle Peter and we noted that Peter is mentioned proportionately more than in the other Gospels (Matthew, Luke and John).

It appears that Peter was the informant for much of the material in this Gospel and the Holy Spirit, as promised by Jesus in John 14:26, reminded Peter of all Jesus said, and he, in turn, committed it to his companion, Mark.

In this chapter we saw:

(1) Mark begins his gospel with the brief statement:
The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Christos is a Greek word meaning an "anointed royal figure." He is prophesized in the Old Testament. And He is the Savior Messiah promised and long-awaited.

So Mark places Jesus in the historic, ancient religion of Israel and also calls Him the Son of God, the name of divinity.

(2) When Jesus is baptized the Holy Spirit descends on Him as a dove. In only one other place is the Holy Spirit compared to a dove: at Creation when the Spirit hovered (or fluttered) over the face of the water.

In the Targums, the Aramaic translation of the Old Testament, the rabbis translated this portion: and the Spirit of God fluttered above the face of the waters like a dove....

(3) The Trinity (Triune God) was involved in Creation and also at the Baptism of Jesus.

The Trinity is characterized by mutually self-giving love. Each glorifies, serves and enhances each other.
And that is the way we are to be with each other, because we are His image-bearers.

(4) Jesus is led into the wilderness and tempted (tested) by Satan. It was not an accidental encounter. Mark treats Satan as a reality, not a myth.

(5) Jesus's message was: Repent and believe the good news!

Repenting means to "turn away," to "change course."

(6) Jesus said: The Kingdom of God is near!
God began renewing His kingship over His creation when Jesus came to earth. For two thousand years His kingdom has been making advances, claiming a strong foothold on this wayward planet.

Someday He will come back and ascend His throne.

(7) Jesus called His first disciples: Andrew, Peter, James and John. He wanted disciples "that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach."

(8) Jesus set up His headquarters first in Capernaum, where Peter and Andrew lived.

(9) Jesus spoke with "authority" because He is the "Author" of all knowledge and all that exists.

(10) Jesus taught at the synagogue in Capernaum, healed Peter's mother-in-law and began his ministry of casting out demons and healing diseases.

(11) In the last portion of Chapter One, Jesus displayed compassion on the leper and touched and healed him, and we see crowds of people coming to Him from all of Galilee for healing.