Ten Years

I’m certain we can all remember that day ten years ago.  Well, not all, thinking of my own great-grandchildren born afterward.  We’ve already begun new generations who will hear it from those who have formed opinions based on subsequent events.  As years pass, those who lived through that day will die off, as those who remembered living through December 7, 1941.

The first call I received was from Second Daughter.  Someone had walked into her office with the news that a plane had struck a skyscraper in New York.  I remembered such an accident from my childhood, but this was not a foggy night.  This time, a second plane, a second tower. A third, in Washington. A fourth, falling in an open field. 

Those hours have been described, with such diverse stories! Some of those stories state it was our own government, others point to an Israeli plot against Islam.  So many people wanting to make it different than the fact that our security did not detect, and stop, an Islamist group coordinating an attack on the object of their hated.  A country they wished to destroy.  Willing to die doing so.

There are many who will argue over the ‘truth’ of 9/11.

Which brings to mind a similar period following Christ’s resurrection. There was so much to tell, and two ways to do it – verbally and the written word.  I like the way Luke began his book:

Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed. (Luke 1:1-4 KJV)

Even a modern journalism class couldn’t do better with Who, What, When, Where – and the Why, “That thou mightest know the certainty.”

What Luke wrote is believed by Christians, as is Matthew, Mark, John and the letters of the apostles.  These are the words Christ’s followers wanted to share with others about what they had seen and done.  They were speaking to new generations, multiple generations for centuries afterward, who would be asking – “Are you certain?”

They were.  So much so that even their mistakes in understanding His message were included.  They wrote of disappointments, discords, disagreements. They wrote of errors and exhortations, but most of all, they wrote of eternity.  This was not an easy thing to do and people died for what they believed. 

Mistakes have been made in the name of Christ, then and in following centuries.  These are men’s mistakes, not by Him and not in His message. Measure them against His word. There will always be those who ignore the words, despise the teachings, deny what changes have been made to the lives of those who follow Christ. And, there will be those who call upon His name.

And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. (Acts 2:21 KJV)

Matthew 22

I used to do quite a bit of analysis.  It’s been nice since retirement to just let things flow – especially what I write here.  I don’t have a theme, I write just what I think about in relation to God’s word.  I can do it every day about every phase of our lives because God permeates our lives.  There isn’t a day goes by that I find time to give Him thanks, pray for others and write about what I believe.

But – that said – a bit of the analytical remains in my mind.  For a long time now I’ve put tags (not displayed on the site, but available when I edit) of the Bible chapters used.  Not the specific verse, but the chapter where it is found.  I was looking at that Friday when I had a few free moments and wondered which I had used most.  A few quick moments with Excel and I can tell you that of the 495 chapters I’ve used for verses, Matthew 22 was used 45 times.  Almost ten percent.

John 3 came in second, and I can understand that one.  There are several verses that come to mind immediately.

I had to go back to Matthew 22 and review, for only verses 37-40 stood out strongly, yet would I be using it even close to 45 times?

Verses 1-14 likens the Lord’s kingdom to a wedding where invited guests would not come, so the invitation went out to strangers.  An entire book comes to mind on that scenario!!

Verses 15-22 is the “render unto Caesar” example of what we owe our governments and our God.

Verses 23-33 He answers the question about resurrection – of course, it was put to Him in a “have you stopped beating your wife” context about marriage in heaven.  Asked by people who did not believe in heaven.

Verses 34-40 are my “Aha!!” verses.  While I know I’ve used the other verses along the way, these are of utmost importance to me, and to anyone interested in why I am a Christian.

Verses 41-46 reverse the situation.  Jesus asks the Pharisees a question about David and about the Christ.  I don’t know that I’ve used that final verse, but it, too, speaks volumes:

And no man was able to answer him a word, neither durst any man from that day forth ask him any more questions. (Matthew 22:46 KJV)

I pray that I will never be stuck for an answer, either.  I have publically stated my position regarding religion and my reasons for believing as I do. I know what I believe offends some people, and I’ve been told that what I write does, too.

All I ask is that if someone wishes to convince me I’m wrong, please do so in a positive manner.  Tell my why and how your belief system is better, not by deriding mine, not with sarcasm, not by listing other’s actions or hypocrisy.  Tell me about your beliefs, what is offered as evidence (not necessarily ‘proof’, but a preponderance of evidence), how it relates to your daily life, what foundation is provided.

Then we can dialog and exchange information, both learning along the way.

A Dose of Reality

Christians are not always standing with lifted arms joyfully praising.  Often we are on our knees petitioning.  There are valleys.  Beloved Husband and I are walking through one.  Key word there = ‘through’, and we are not alone.  Our Shepherd leads us through this valley, for it does contain the shadow of death.

Of course, simply being human is a terminal disease. We have but a couple of stories of people not experiencing the death passage. Why then do we not better prepare ourselves for its arrival?

As with most terminal illnesses, we humans have no ‘expiration’ or ‘best use by’ date stamped on us. Some receive warnings early enough to extend their time here, but some receive no notice at all.

That has been brought home to me with a bang recently as more than a couple of family members are living with the knowledge that their time here is shortened. For each, a medical diagnosis delivered the message that bodies are falling short of personal expectations.

Here in Texas we’ve been living with a similar diagnosis for our plants and trees as the drought, low humidity and high temperatures have taken their greenery and turned them into tinderboxes that light at the slightest provocation.  That picture turns me to a verse:

Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. (Habakkuk 3:17-18 KJV)

In spite of all the valleys throughout our lives, we do find joy in our Lord, the God of our salvation.  We are not alone in kneeling in petition, yet acknowledging His saving grace:

Forsake me not, O LORD: O my God, be not far from me. Make haste to help me, O Lord my salvation. (Psalms 38:21-22 KJV)

David wasn’t the only one to speak of salvation.  I love Isaiah’s verse, too, for it speaks of that living water:

Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation. Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation. (Isaiah 12:2-3 KJV)

But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. (John 4:14 KJV)

Did you ever notice the graphics for artesian wells?  Take a look below – they are found in the valleys.

Old

The bristlecone pines are a small group of pine trees … that are thought to reach an age far greater than that of any other single living organism known, up to nearly 5,000 years.

Yesterday I wrote “Not A New Thought.”  Has it dawned on you that none of mine are?  What I read was written thousands of years ago. The Preacher wrote:

The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 1:9 KJV)

Oh, I can hear the laughter now.  “What,” they say as they are reading this on a computer, iPad or smart phone.  “They sure didn’t have this when the Preacher wrote!”

True, but the universe is arguably a closed system:

The "Law of Conservation of Mass" states that "the mass of a closed system will remain constant over time. The law implies that mass cannot be created or destroyed, although it may be rearranged in space and changed into different types of particles."  Students are taught early on "If the number of atoms of each element remains the same, then the mass can never change in a chemical reaction. The total mass of the reactants must equal the total mass of the products. This observation that mass must remain constant in a chemical reaction as known as the law of conservation of mass."

Of course, I’m not proposing that the physical atoms of the iPad existed then therefore it is not new, but I am saying that forms of communication existed then, and the technology displays it in different ways today, but the words of the Preacher still apply.

One bristlecone pine has been dated up to 5,000 years old, an old tree before Christ was born, growing well before the Preacher wrote the words of Ecclesiastes. Yet all live today, the tree, Christ and the Preacher’s words.  Time is not relevant:

But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. (2 Peter 3:8 KJV)

One thing I can state for certain, I won’t be around here like this for the next thousand years, but I will live.  The only thing relevant about my time is whether or not I’ve accepted Jesus’ words:

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6 KJV)

Not A New Thought

A long time ago my English friend J posted a blog about life being very much as a train ride.  People get on at different stops, and get off along the way.  On the train, acquaintances are made. Sometimes there are strong bonds discovered, others are simply greetings passed between each other. 

I’ve always enjoyed trains, just as I enjoy the photo above on a route between Fremont and San Jose, California.  As is life, they are both beautiful and confining.  Passengers cannot do all they wish, just as in life we cannot do all we wish.  There are boundaries set, walls erected and we pass by places we would which to linger, stopping at stations that are neither desired nor are comforting.

The journey’s destination is of our choosing, though.  There are stations along the way where we can choose a different train. No matter which one we are on, there is a destination.  And, there is a price to be paid.

In life’s journey, a price has been paid for us:

For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's. (1 Corinthians 6:20 KJV)

This was the base of God’s plan:

For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; (1 Corinthians 15:3 KJV)

This was not expected.  God’s ways are not man’s ways – we see through a glass, darkly, as to how He plans:

But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. (1 Corinthians 2:9 KJV)

What faith it would have required for the disciples to have accepted Christ’s death without fear, without regret, without feeling as though there were no tomorrow.  They didn’t have that faith, but gained it as they realized His death was set from the beginning of time:

But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. (1 Corinthians 2:7-8 KJV)

Here in our physical world, we trust the rails will hold the train, and for the most of the time, they do.  We trust the engines will continue, and are only inconvenienced when they don’t.  We trust the engineer to have to knowledge to reach our destination.  All of this for hours or, at the most, days.

The spiritual destination takes greater trust, stronger faith that God is able.  I believe He is, and pray for you Paul’s greeting:

Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father: (Galatians 1:3-4 KJV)

Expectations

Whether they are great or not, it’s impossible to live up to other people’s expectations.  I was reminded of that by a television ad for the website:  I am second.  Many of the testimonies there come from people who have tried to be first, to live up to expectations others set for them.  I enjoyed reading what they say about now being second.

I am neither endorsing nor advocating their site.  My personal preference for witnessing is within the congregation of a New Testament church. But, that is what I meant – my personal preference.  I cannot quibble with Jerry Zucha’s testimony when he writes:

Jesus is first because He's made Himself real to me. He gave me what I was searching for and He has been there every moment of my life now. He's so real that though I've never seen him with my eyes, I know who he is and I know what he's done and it's been the greatest joy of my life to have that kind of relationship with Him.

I can relate to Pete Brisco’s testimony there, too:

I think that it would be more accurate to say that in people's minds there are two potential ways to Heaven: work based systems and faith based. The idea is that if I do enough good things, God, whoever they happen to think He is, will be pleased with me and then He'll receive me into His presence. The problem with that mindset is, how do we know how many good things we have to do? … The faith based mind set is that God in His infinite grace gave everything to reach to us. It's a totally different thing. The Bible teaches us clearly, Jesus said, with His very words, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but through Me." So all the religions can't possibly be right and the thing that makes Christianity different is that the Father says I'm gonna reach out to you.

The Bible says:

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: (Ephesians 2:8 KJV)

Some early Christians felt there were some specific works necessary, but Peter spoke from experience with Jesus and the Holy Spirit:

But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they. (Acts 15:11 KJV)

Read that in context – it is a very important Christian doctrine.  Just as important as:

The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he. (John 4:25-26 KJV)

Where We Are

I firmly believe that God places people where they need to be to fulfill His greater plan for mankind.  Sometimes He tells them where to go and His instructions are followed:

Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. (Genesis 12:1-4 KJV)

Other times there dissention in the ranks and those called head in opposite directions:

Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me. But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. (Jonah 1:1-3 KJV)

In a way, I thank God that I was never called to do what these men did – yet in another way, I firmly believe that God led me to where I am today.  He placed me in a position where there are people who I’ve been a help to, and people that have helped me.

If it were not for an internet friend EnJay, I would not have been aggressive in pushing a couple of doctors for Beloved Husband’s diagnosis.  If it weren’t be these blogs, I would not have met her. From my point of view, God leading me to write about the reading of His word has provided a help for me.

That is just a small example of how personal I believe our God is.  I say ‘our’, though quite a few of my regular readers have told me they are not Christian.  Some are of other religions, a couple are at the least agnostic, and others are wishing for faith, but cannot bring themselves to believe in a God great enough to create the universe yet personal enough to care for His creation.

Others’ beliefs have no bearing on my own.  I read His word, and I believe David’s words to his son:

And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever. (1 Chronicles 28:9 KJV)

That I wish for my children, their children, my great-grands and generations to come.  And, for my readers, too.