Nonsensical

By Russ Lawson

(From the banks of Stinking Creek)

 

One of my wife’s favorite stories (and movie) uses a word I had never heard before… that word is “Nonsensical”. I understood the word and the way it was used, but the uniqueness of the word has stuck in my mind for a long time now. Nonsensical… not a word we use often, if ever, in our current world, yet perhaps we should. The word has these typical meanings, “Without sense; meaningless; absurd; foolish; irrational; preposterous”.

 

The word itself can be traced back to the late 1600’s and seems to have been at its peak use in the 1800s, then we just about stopped using it in the 1900s. As I have thought about this word I wonder if we should not reintroduce it to our everyday language.

 

As we look at our world it seems that more and more of what we see is just “nonsensical”. Our political situation is often “Absurd and irrational”. Our world's view of right and wrong or sin and righteousness is mostly nonsensical also. It seems that far too many people don’t believe in any boundaries at all, there is no right or wrong, no good or bad. The only thing that matters is what makes them happy or satisfies their lusts and longing and that in itself is “nonsensical”.

Proverbs 21:2 puts it this way: “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes; But God weighs the hearts.”

 

The scripture speaks specifically about people like that in Isaiah 5:20-24, “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight. Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine and champions at mixing drinks, who acquit the guilty for a bribe, but deny justice to the innocent. Therefore, as tongues of fire lick up straw and as dry grass sinks down in the flames, so their roots will decay and their flowers blow away like dust; for they have rejected the law of the LORD Almighty and spurned the word of the Holy One of Israel.”

 

Some might say, “That’s just the way it is in our world and there is no God, there is no judgment, there is no right or wrong,” They are saying, if there is a God why doesn't he show himself. Folks like that are just like the people Isaiah is writing about, In verses 18-19 he says this is the attitude they have, “Cursed are you who use lies to sell evil, who present sin to the people by the truckload and sell it however they can… Who say, "What's God waiting for? Let him hurry up if he is real so we can see him.” (RL)

 

Now that is truly nonsensical because God, whether they choose to believe in him or not, has promised a judgment, a final accounting of their lives and decisions. The apostle Paul writes in Romans 14:11-12, “It is written: "'As surely as I live,' says the Lord, 'every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.'" So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.”

 

Maybe it's time to bring some meaning... some sense back into our world and do things God's way. What do you think?

 

For those who don't know, my wife’s favorite book and movie is by Jane Austin titled “Pride and Prejudice”. 

 

A WONDERFUL THOUGHT

By Russ Lawson

From the banks of Clear Fork Creek

 

Most of us have thoughts of what would make us most happy. What would be the “perfect day” or what one place we would love to visit or what one person we would love to see again. Those things and many others could be considered “wonderful thoughts”.

 

You may or may not know of a young girl by the name of Anne Frank. Anne Frank was born in 1929 in Frankfurt, Germany. She died in 1945 at Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, murdered along with thousands by the Nazi’s. She was a Jewish girl who kept a diary of her family's life while hiding for 2 years during the German occupation of the Netherlands.

 

Her diary often contains thoughts of hope. I read one them recently that reminded me of the hope we have as Christians. Notice what she wrote while living in uncertain times never knowing when the door of their hiding place might be broken down and then arrested simply for being of a different faith and heritage.

 

“What a wonderful thought it is that some of the best days of our lives haven’t even happened yet.” – Anne Frank

 

We live in some very trying and stressful times right now, don’t we? Of course for some that could have been said no matter when they lived. So life goes on with our struggles and challenges and we fight to overcome them and try to accomplish our goals, whatever they may be.

 

What is your challenge, what is causing you stress; in the long run will it make a difference? I love what the apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:9, “But as it is written: “No eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”

 

You see the best days of our lives are truly ahead of us no matter what happens to us here on this earth! Paul also wrote these powerful words in Rom 8:35-39: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered." No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us, For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

 

My prayer for each of us is that while we face our struggles in life that we never forget that the best is yet to come! What a wonderful thought!

 

Use words if necessary

By
Russ Lawson

 

Several years back I read of a
church that had the following sign hanging in front of their building. It read:
“Preach the Gospel at all times... Use words if necessary”. What a great
statement of what our lives should be about. It's not a new concept at all. Matthew 5:16 Jesus instructs his
followers, “In the same way, let your light
shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father
in heaven.”

 Maybe a way we could describe this is; it’s like when you
want to sell your house and you have an open house for folks. You dust and
sweep, mop and polish so folks will see how great your place is and want to buy
it for their own. That is what Jesus is saying about our Christian lives. I
want us to think about the whole message Jesus is giving to his listeners in
the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew
5:14-16 from a different perspective. One man tried to paraphrase Jesus’
message this way, “Here’s another way to put
it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is
not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a
hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under
a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there
on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your
lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this
generous Father in heaven.” (MSG) I think in this instance he captures the essence of Jesus’
message.

 Proverbs 27:19 has this to say, “As water reflects the face, so
one’s life reflects the heart.”  Well…
maybe it’s simpler to just say, “Preach the Gospel at all times... Use words
if necessary,” How are you doing at letting your light shine? Sometimes
I don’t do so well, but I’m trying to do better! I hope you are too.

 

 

 

They REALLY lived!   

                           By Russ Lawson 

One of my favorite movies
from the past few years is called "Second Hand Lions". The movie
is about two old bachelor brothers living in the middle of the prairie in Texas. They have lived
adventure filled lives, served in the French Foreign Legion and lived in Africa for 40 years. Now they have come back to live out
their last years alone and feeling old and useless. Then fate intervenes; a
niece who has made a series of bad choices in her life "dumps" her
son (whose about 12 years old) on their doorstep for them to keep.

The boy is scared out of his
wits; he's a city boy and doesn't know the first thing about the country, the
eccentric uncles are about honor and honesty. Slowly a bond begins to form and
the boy begins to learn about the past these men have led. He understands that
they feel they have no reason to live and are actively looking for dangerous
situations by which to end their life (with their boots on as they say) while
they are still able to face challenges.

 Trying to regain some of
their excitement for life at one point the brothers buy an African lion from a
circus, which they plan to turn loose and hunt. It turns out that the lion is
old, sick and tame and they end up letting it live in their cornfield. That's
where they get the name of the movie, "Second hand lions," because
that describes the brothers also, once ferocious, now just old and not able to
do what they once did.

 You know what I love about
this movie, I can identify with the two old brothers to a point. Through the
grace of God Melody and I have lived through some tremendous adventures while
serving Him. We have lived in several different states here in America and
even on the African continent. We have friends, brothers and sisters in Christ
literally all over the world. We have worked hard, dealt death and illness and
difficult situations and are still able to keep going, at least for the
present. We have experienced life to the fullest with all of its joys and
sorrows up to this point in our lives and I pray that we can end our lives
"with our boots on" (still actively seeking adventure in Christ).

 At the end of the movie the
uncles now in their 80's "go out in a blaze of glory" so to speak.
The young boy, now a man meets someone who had heard the stories about his
uncles from his grandfather in North Africa.
The statement is made, "so they really lived". The last words of the
movie are the response of the young boy, now a man when he says, "Yes,
they REALLY lived". What better epitaph could you want? Doesn't that say
it all for us, who of us isn't seeking some kind of fulfillment, something that
makes us feel that life is worth living, something that gives meaning to
getting out of bed in the mornings?

 Do you want to really live?
The apostle Paul had a handle on that idea. He wrote in Philippians 1:21,
"For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain". Paul
also wrote in Romans 14:8, "For if we
live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore,
whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s."

 God speaks through the apostle John in Revelation
14:13, where we read, "And I heard a voice from heaven saying,
"Write this down: Blessed are those who die in the Lord from now on. Yes,
says the Spirit, they are blessed indeed, for they will rest from all their
toils and trials; for their good deeds follow them!"

 The adventure continues for
those who serve God, because "they really live" loving and serving
God now and forever! How are you doing?

 

 

Things Are Always Changing – Maybe for you too…

The Endless Road

I admit it that I am slow to change. It often takes me
awhile to get started, but after I do, I normally jump in with both feet so to
speak.

It's the same way with bringing my web-blog up to speed. I
have been toying with the idea of making some changes for awhile, and finally
have made that move. Keep an eye on this page, mark it and look for more
changes and I hope to do a better job each day.

I have had a web presence for the past 15 years and have
looked for a better way spread my message. I chose a new name as you can see. I
now use http:/myunexpectedadventure.com.
Why? Because it seems that my whole life has been one adventure and I just
never know what is going to happen next. I hope you will continue to travel
with me on this adventure and even take a look at some of the books I have
written about my experiences.

I will continue to post my blogs on this site for a short
while longer, but PLEASE SUBSCRIBE to my new site and PLEASE SHARE it with your
friends it is really important me to if I am to continue doing this.

So anyway, look for the next leg of life's adventure when
you least expect it, that's how it always happens.

Your Fellow Traveler,

Russ Lawson

THANKSGIVING ALWAYS

Having just completed our book on
our lives in Africa I was reminded of all of the ways God has blessed our
lives. He mostly uses our fellow Christians, but so many times he has also
blessed us through those outside of our Christian family.

Reviewing some old letters for our
book I ran across some thoughts I had written 20 years ago while preparing to
leave Kenya, they went something like this: “We have discussed just what we
will miss when leaving Kenya. It's not a long list until we come to the people.
We have gained many good friends and brothers and sisters in Christ. Part of
our hearts will remain with them always; we have come to love the country
through the people we have met.”

In the same way I wrote, “We have
discussed what we will enjoy most about being back in the States. The list
again is short, but mostly it is about being with our family and our Christian
brothers and sisters. As I reflect, it occurs to me that the things we
appreciate both in Kenya and the United States are the people. Physical things
always come in second in our lives... which is the way it should be.”

The
Apostle Paul wrote these words 2,000 years ago and they still help guide our
lives. Philippians 4:11-13, "I am
not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever
the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to
have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every
situation; I can do all this through him who gives me strength."

In our hearts we know it is true
don't we? We know it will never really be having things which will make us
happy or causes us to give thanks to God. It is always relationships that
matter the most, it is relationships that fill our hearts and will go through
eternity with us.

So really it's the same this season
as with all the rest of the year isn't it? Whether we are in need or have
plenty, whether we are satisfied or lose it all makes no lasting difference. We
can rejoice and give thanks to God, because our happiness, our contentment
comes from relationships, both with other people and with our God. And right
now, I'm thankful for each of you who let me be part of your lives throughout
the whole of every year.

https://www.amazon.com/Living-Dream-Life-Adventures-Africa-ebook/dp/B076VTWLYC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1511350470&sr=8-1&keywords=book+russ+lawson

 

The Leaf

I'm sitting at our dining
table looking out the back patio door. On the patio I see a leaf, dried and
brown, but that is not unusual, especially at this time of year. It's the time
we celebrate Thanksgiving and remember all of God's blessings. In reality, our
yard is filled with leaves, it's part of nature, part of how the world works. I
understand that some folks don't really appreciate this change, but I like to
think of it in a positive light and enjoy God's beauty.

The thought the leaf brought
to my mind is that only a short time ago it was on a tree, bright green and
shining. That of course led me to thinking about the course of our life also.
Things change so very quickly don't they? I mean, where has the time gone? I
have been re-reading Melody and My book, "Living the dream, our life and
adventures in Africa." I just read a paragraph that spoke of my
celebrating my 47^th birthday in Kenya. That's been 23 years and it
is covered in just a few pages in a book. What happened? How did I get from
there to where I am at now?

Yes, I could detail all of
the steps it took to get where we are now, but isn't that the question we all
ask at some point? We are in school, maybe teenagers, maybe just married and
suddenly we have grandchildren and many of the friends of our youth have
already passed from this life.

There is an old hymn that has
some very pertinent words for us about this process. The hymn is titled, "Swiftly we're turning" and the
words go like this:

"Swiftly we're turning life's daily
pages, Swiftly the hours are changing to years. How are we using God's golden
moments? Shall we reap glory? Shall we reap tears?"

What happens to us is just that
life happens as it is supposed to, as is according to God's plan. You are probably
familiar with the passage in Ecclesiastes
3:1-11 where we are reminded that:

For
everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven.

A time to be
born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest.

A time to
kill and a time to heal. A time to tear down and a time to build up.

A time to cry
and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance.

A time to
scatter stones and a time to gather stones. A time to embrace and a time to
turn away.

A time to
search and a time to quit searching. A time to keep and a time to throw away.

A time to
tear and a time to mend. A time to be quiet and a time to speak.

A time to
love and a time to hate. A time for war and a time for peace.

What do
people really get for all their hard work? I have seen the burden God has
placed on us all.

Yet God has
made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the
human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God's work
from beginning to end.

Yes, an old, dried, brown leaf can have a lot of
meaning if you just stop and think about it… especially when you think about it
in relationship to the length of and purpose of your life. How are you doing?  How about choosing to think about the
eternity God has planted in our heart. There is only one way to get that and
that is through change. Rather than trying to stop it we need to embrace it…
after all, the pages are turning swiftly, aren’t they.

Just a little bit...

Are you undergoing some
struggle in your life right now? If not then give it time, because you most
likely will at some time in your future. I'm not trying to be pessimistic, but
I've seen how the world (and living in it), works. Yes, I'm sure that some
folks have what we perceive to be "the perfect life," but I doubt
that is really the case.

I remember hearing a story
about our problems that went something like this: A man was deeply troubled
having a very serious problem in his life. He looked at those around him and
did not see anyone who seemed to suffer as he was. That night when he went to
bed he prayed to God to lift his problem from him. When he went to sleep he
began to dream. In the dream he saw people walking in a circle throwing their
problem in a pile in the center. Each person was then free to choose a problem
someone else had discarded to replace their own. He joined the circle and
walked around the pile of problems. As he circled searching for a problem he would
choose to bear he discovered that many people who he had thought had light
problems actually had heavy burdens. In the end he chose to pick up the problem
he had discarded and bear it once again. Sometimes it is true, the trouble we
know is better than the devil we don't.

How many times have you heard
someone say, "Just hold on a little longer," or "It's always
darkest before the dawn," or "It will get worse before it gets
better," or "God has a plan for you," or "You just have to
believe," or perhaps one of the thousands of other variations of these
sayings.

When you are dealing with a
deep hurt, a struggle that causes pain in your heart, those words often aren’t
of much comfort, are they? And yet if we claim to be Christians we face the
battle around the question of Faith don't we? One of passages which troubled me
for many years is Matthew 17:20
where Jesus said:  "Because
you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a
mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it
will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."

What Jesus is saying here is
that Faith is the most important thing we can have in our lives, it is central
to our relationship to God. Did Jesus literally mean that we are suppose to try
to move mountains with their minds? No, not at all; Jesus was using a common
phrase from their society which all Jews knew. A Rabbi would talk about
resolving difficulties as "uprooting or pulverizing mountains". Jesus
never meant for this to be taken literally, but the passage is talking about
the power of even just a little bit of faith to heal our lives.

Having even "Just a
little bit" of faith implies that you have a relationship with Jesus to
start with. It is impossible to "cast your cares (or burdens) on
him," (1 Peter 5:7), if you
have let the relationship with him slip away. He is not asking for a mountain
sized faith, he is begging you for have the faith of a mustard seed.

So where are you in dealing
with your problems? Where are you in your relationship to Jesus? You can't deal
with the problems without having faith, even just a little bit of it.

You've got to walk right!

Many of you know that I've
been debilitated for the past (almost) two months. Yesterday I had a
consultation with my doctor regarding the results of my MRI last week. It seems
they found some compressed disks in my lower back. So, now I see a specialist
and see where that takes me.

I mentioned to Melody the
other day that I was getting tired of sitting around so much and wanted to get
back to work. She in her wisdom told me, "You've got to walk right
first!" OK, I admit it, I have been tending to stumble at times lately and
have not had perfect balance with my leg giving away unexpectedly. So, she's
right, before I can get on with the things necessary in my life, I've got to
walk right.

The same thing is true of our
spiritual life isn't it? We stumble around at times unable to walk as we would
wish and then are confused by the fact that we don't have a better relationship
with God. What do you have to do to learn to "walk right"?

John gives us a little insight into that in 1 John 1:6-7 where he writes: "If we
claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do
not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we
have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us
from all sin."

For me to begin to "walk right," physically
I'm going to have to follow the doctor's orders or prescribed treatment. For us
to walk right spiritually we are going to have to do the same thing.

The problem I have is that sometimes I'm not a very
good patient. The doctor tells me, "Do these exercises, take this
medicine, etc.", and I try to do that for the most part, but sometimes I
get lazy and don't follow them exactly and because of that sometimes I don't
heal as quickly as I should.

Some are the same with spiritual things. God gives us
specific directions as to how to walk in this life, how to serve him, yet we
get lazy and don't want to follow His will exactly. God reminds His people in
the Old Testament of this problem and encourages them to do better in Deuteronomy 5:32-33 where he says
through Moses: "So be careful to do what the LORD your God
has commanded you; do not turn aside to the right or to the left. Walk in
obedience to all that the LORD your God has commanded you, so that you may live
and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess."

So, if you want to stop stumbling around religiously,
trying to walk right spiritually but not doing such a good job of it, then get
with the program and be obedient to God, do what He says, even when it's hard
and even when you don't want to. Because before you can be successful
spiritually you have to walk right.

New Book Kindle Released

Dear Readers,



I finally completed a work I have have going on for several years and wanted to share this information with you.



It is a Amazon Kindle release and will be listed for free downloads for the next 3 days. Please take a look at it, please share the link with your friends, please give me review of the book. This is very important in the Amazon sales promotion system. The more reviews you get the higher you are in their promotion/advertisment system.



Anyway, take a look.



God Bless,

Russ Lawson



https://www.amazon.com/Living-Dream-Life-Adventures-Africa-ebook/dp/B076VTWLYC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1509447320&sr=8-1&keywords=russ+lawson

How to live forever

This morning our oldest son dropped off our grand daughter on his way
to work. My wife takes her to school and later picks her up. We were fixing
breakfast and just chatted with him for a few moments. He mentioned that he was
tired today, so I gave him some herbs to give him a boost in energy. His mom
jokingly said, “The herbs dad gives us will help us stay healthy for many
years,” then she added, “He’s really trying to help us live forever.”

I thought about that and realized once again that I am married to a
very wise woman. Yes, I do deal with the physical side of life (herbs and
such), but I also deal more heavily with the spiritual side of life.

I love the old song we no longer hear, but has a great message. The words
say, “I’m going to live forever, I’m going to die no never…. Jesus died
on a cross for me and I’m going to live forever.”

Where do you put your emphasis in life? I know people who spend
thousands of dollars on exercise club memberships, exercise equipment, etc.
They spend hours and hours working out, some have special life coaches or
counselors they spend time with each week. They look good and feel good
physically, but spiritually they are lacking. They struggle to make it through
life and all that it throws at them, yet (for some), they don’t find what they
are looking for.

I will be the first to admit that some of the things with which people
struggle go beyond just a lack of spirituality. I know that there are some
genuine physical problems (illnesses, imbalances, etc.), that account for some
emotional problems. I realize that there are some situations over which you
have no control that bring stress and difficulties into your life, both
physically, emotionally and spiritually. It’s hard to hold on to the thought
offered in Romans 8:28 where Paul writes: “All things work
together for good for those who love the Lord.” I am preparing a class
on the book of Jonah right now, and one of the lessons I discovered is that God
can sometimes allow bad things to happen to get out attention.

There are two things we need to remember about life: (1) there is a
great physician who can help us in all aspects of our life. 1 Peter 5:7,
“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you”. (NIV)

(2) Our life does not truly consist of just the physical. Luke 12:4
tells us, “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body,
and after that have nothing more that they can do”. (ESV)

Yes, the physical is important, that’s why I study and practice Herbal
medicine, but that’s not all there is to life. I want to live forever, so I
practice at the spiritual side of my life too. You only have one chance to get
it right, so how are you doing?

THE ORIGINAL TWITTER

Most of the younger generation believes that the idea
Tweeting came into being with them, those of us who have been around awhile
know differently. Tweeting is the idea of conveying a message with very few
letters or words. Our generation has been doing that for years and years.

It seems that we naturally have a thing for writing
encrypted (sometimes shortened) messages in the things we write. When I was in grade
school, my friends and I would make up "secret codes" and spend hours
writing (on paper) private messages to each other.

As we matured we outgrew simple codes and became more
sophisticated in the method and message… we discovered "Vanity License Plates"
or "Personalized License Plates" for our cars, trucks and
motorcycles. These vary in the United States from state to state, but normally
state a message using 5 – 7.5 letters. Other countries follow the same
practice, in the United Kingdom they are called, "prestige plate, private
number plate, cherished plate
or personalized registration".
These license plates sometimes carry special messages designed by the
purchaser, sometimes easy and sometimes difficult to decipher.

My wife and I keep
an eye out for these plates and try to discover or understand the message they
contain. For example we saw a bright lime green car this week on which the
plated said, "I NO RIT" or "I know, right!" We supposed it
was referring to the uniqueness of the color of the car. Then there was,
"MY1VET," "IMAJEDI," "DOES185,"
"PDOFF," "H20 WELL, and on of my favorites "AFORDY7,"
seen on a 1947 Ford.

I think you can get the idea that we are a
pretty clever bunch of beings, but did you realize that God beat us too it in
this area. Way back in Exodus
3:13-14 we read, "But Moses replied, "When I go to the Israelites
and say to them, 'The God of your ancestors sent me to you,' they will ask me,
'What is his name?' So what can I tell them? God said, "I am who I am. You
must tell them: 'The one who is called I AM has sent me to you.'"

There has been much speculation regarding the meaning of
this message. What does, "I AM" mean, is it a name or a description? I
believe it is a description trying to convey the power of the creator of the
universe. I like how Matthew Henry's commentary puts it. He says the message of
"I AM" is: "1. That he is self-existent: he has his being of
himself. 2. That he is eternal and unchangeable, and always the same,
yesterday, to-day, and forever." I like that description of the message,
it may not be exactly what God had in mind when he gave us the three letter
message, but then if we live according to his instructions in the rest of His
Book, we can find out in person someday, can't we?

BRINGER OF THE LIGHT

Have you ever met one of those people who as they say,
"lights up the room when they come in"? I hope you have, because I
have and it gives hope to life.

Where I work I have a friend named Anthony, he is one of
those people. It may not be a coincidence, but I find it interesting that he
works in the Lighting/ Electrical department. He helps bring light into
people's lives physically, but also spiritually. Anthony is a lover of God and
is not afraid to share his relationship with the father with others. He is one
of those folks I look for when I'm at work, because he makes work seem… well,
less like work, he brings a little light into my life, a little hope when I see
God working in him.

Of
course the example for us all is Jesus Christ, our God; our Brother; our friend
and our support. I love the description that the Apostle John gives of Jesus in
the book of John. In John 1:1-5 we
read, "In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and
the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything
through Him, and nothing was created except through Him. The Word gave life to
everything that was created, and His life brought light to everyone. The light
shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it."
(NLT)

There
is our example, the true bringer of the light! We sometimes sing a hymn that
says, "Oh to be like thee, blessed redeemer," but I wonder if we
really understand the full impact of those words, of what he was and what he
did. John goes on and says, "The One who is the true light, who gives
light to everyone, was coming into the world. 
He came into the very world He created, but the world didn't recognize
Him. He came to His own people, and even they rejected Him." (John 1: 9-11)

You
see what this says is that if you try to live as a Christian and bring light to
others; don't expect them to always thank you. They rejected Jesus, they will
often reject you.

I don't know about you, but I pray that I can be a little
more like Anthony to those around me, but even more I pray that I can let the
light of Christ be seen in me. There is no such thing as a secret Christian,
you either are or you aren’t. Jesus himself said in Matthew 5:14, "You are the light of the world… like a city
on a hilltop that cannot be hidden."

When is the last time someone was glad to see you
coming? Could it be you need to let the light of Jesus be seen more in your
life?

Wow, That's Embarrassing!

 

When is the last time you messed up? Maybe it was something
big, maybe was just a little something, but we all mess up in life from time to
time, don't we?

This week, I was talking with a couple of people at work and
that night I started thinking about the conversation. The next day I went to
each of them and said, "I want to apologize, I said something negative and
I shouldn't have."Each of them said, "That's OK, we didn't think
anything about it." That little incident cost me nothing, reminded me of
the value of watching what I said and let others know that as a Christian I
have certain values.

In the gospel record of Christ's arrest before his
crucifixion we read of his disciple Peter's actions. You are probable aware of
how he denied even know Jesus, not once, but three times. How would you like to
be remembered for that?

In
John 21 Jesus comes to the disciples on the shore of the Sea of Galilee about a
week after his death, burial and resurrection. He serves them breakfast and has
one of his more famous discussions with Peter. He asks Peter, "Do
you love me," not just once, but three times. Now think about the
situation. He was sitting there around the fire having breakfast with all of
the other disciples. Each of those men knew that Peter had denied Jesus.

What
was worse is that just a week before this we have the following conversation
recorded for EVERYONE to see and remember: "Peter declared, "Even if
everyone else deserts You, I will never desert you." Jesus replied,
"I tell you the truth, Peter; this very night, before the rooster crows,
you will deny three times that you even know Me "No!" Peter insisted.
"Even if I have to die with You, I will never deny You!" And all the
other disciples vowed the same." (Matthew 26:33-35)

Wow,
how embarrassing would that be now as he is sitting there with Jesus at
breakfast! Jesus. In the end Peter couldn't bear it, he just bows his head,
heart broken, and says, "Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the
question a third time. He said, "Lord, You know everything. You know that
I love You." Jesus said, "Then feed My sheep." Jesus was saying,
"then live like you mean it, like you really, really love me!"
(John 21:17)

You
see, that is what Jesus is asking of us every day. He knows we are going to
mess us, but we need to own up to it even if it is embarrassing, ask for
forgiveness and then get on with serving God. It maybe some little thing or it
could be some big thing… it doesn't matter. Make it right no matter how
embarrassing and get on with living like 
you really love God. The apostle John, who saw all of this take place,
wrote in 1John 1:8-9, "If we
claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the
truth. But if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us
our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness". Maybe it is
time to stop being embarrassed and start making things right with God and your
fellow men.

The Cane

This past week was a bit of a struggle for me. I had a problem with my
back, my sciatic nerve to be exact, which affected my leg also. Because of this
problem for several days I used a cane to walk with, it supported me and kept
me stable as I walked. Most of the time this cane sits in the back of a closet,
but it's great to have it when you need it.

Our son, Kirk is often seen carrying a cane. He has at times had to
use it for the same reasons as have I, but most of the time he carries it for a
different reason. He teaches Martial Arts and one of the forms he practices is
called “Bartitsu,” which is called a “Mixed Martial Arts Form.” Basically Bartitsu
is a form of martial arts that uses a cane as a defensive weapon.

I know it may seem strange to be writing about a cane, but I’m
mentioning this because of a comment by a member of our church family, Gary. Recently
he said, “Some folks say, ‘your religion is a cane (or a crutch) to get you
through life when you can’t cope,’ and they are right, but that’s not a bad
thing, it’s the way it is suppose to be.”

I hadn’t thought of it in that context before, but he is exactly
right. We who are Christians have something that those who are not Christians don’t
have. We have a hope, a faith, a belief in someone greater than any problem we
can face on earth. While dealing with my back injury there were a couple of
times that my cane kept me from falling when my leg gave out. It supported me
and did exactly what a cane is supposed to do. Our cane (or our crutch), is
Christ and His church and it is doing exactly what it is suppose to be doing;
helping and supporting us, keeping us from, falling. Hebrews 4:15 tells
us, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our
weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are,
yet he did not sin.” Christ understands and supports us, holds us up
when we are about to fall, “IF” we hold tight to him as our cane and our
support.

In a different application a spiritual cane is also that which is used
to protect us and fight against Satan, (The gates of hell shall not prevail
against the church, Matthew 16:18). That shows an aggressive approach to
fighting Satan… so our cane, our crutch is useful in that way also. There are
times that we as Christians must take a stand against Satan and Sin!

So, my conclusion to all of this is that yes, Christ and his church
are my cane, my crutch, and I’m proud of it, because I know my weakness, I know
how easily I can fall. Maybe you need to become more involved in the use of
this cane to lift up yourself and others.  Each of us have a choice; we can leave Christ
leaning in the back of the closet or take him out and make him a real part of
our lives. Could it be that you need to learn to lean on Christ and his Church
a little more than you do?

Is 49% enough?

DID
YOU KNOW...Any cheese which is labeled as "processed cheese" is
really only 49% cheese (even thought it is labeled as “Real Cheese”. The other
51% is coloring, binders, preservatives, and stabilizers. So… does that make processed
cheese “real” cheese or only a “cheese like” product. How close to “the real
thing,” does something need to be before it is considered… well… real?

DID
YOU KNOW... that there are no regulations regarding the labeling of Honey? A
product can have as little as 1% honey (the rest corn syrup), and still be
labeled as 100% honey. How much honey does it need to be real honey.

DID
YOU KNOW… that many who claim to be Christians, don’t read their bible
regularly, don’t attend the worship periods of the church, don’t share their
faith with others, don’t fellowship with other Christians, often don’t live
their lives as if Christ lived within them, yet are still labeled as
“Christians”. How much much of God’s directions or commands do you need to keep
to still be considered a “real” Christian?

John
wrote in 1 John 2:3-4, “We
know that we have come to know him if we keep his commands. Whoever says, “I
know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in
that person.” So… how
much does it take to be a real Christian according to God’s Word? It seems to
me that God is saying that it takes (at least trying to give), 100% of our lives to him.

Is
49% of the real thing enough? Well, that’s one of the reasons we don’t buy
“processed cheese,” I want the “real” thing. Do you think that God will be
satisfied with 49% of your life?

A Come to Jesus Meeting

It
may be strange to think of it, but when we say the phrase, “Come to Jesus” it
has a different meaning to some than it did just a few years ago.

For
example, you may hear someone speak of a "Come To Jesus Meeting". In
our American culture this describes a time when a polite ultimatum is given,
generally followed by a less polite ultimatum, then a threat or final option.
If you are a parent this may mean that “your meeting” is followed by a parental
spanking or some other form of punishment. If you are an adult, something more
sever may be the result of “your meeting”.

The
phrase may be used in this way: “Son, this is your only opt ion and if you do
not want to do this, then you can come here and we will have a "come to
Jesus meeting". In other words, there will be consequences to your
decision not to comply with the request.

In
reality that meaning has not changed from the original has it? Jesus came to
call all men unto him, right? For what purpose? To initiate a change in their
lives an actions and to ultimately save them from their sins. He never
threatens, but does point out the consequences for someones “failure to comply”.
The refusal to give our hearts to him, to love him enough to do what he asks
has t he consequences of eternal separation from God.

We
tend to categorize sins (the refusal to obey God’s directions) as either big
sins or little sins, but in reality they all bear the same consequences don’t
they? A good example of this is found in Revelation
21:8, “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and
murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall
have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the
second death.”

A
modern translation puts it this way: “But cowards, unbelievers, the
corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol
worshipers, and all liars, their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur.
This is the second death.”

What
is the second death? It is an eternal separation from God, the source of life,
which by definition is a spiritual death. If you want to understand a true
“come to Jesus meeting,” that is it. Sin of any kind is still sin and our
failure to comply with God’s request brings about the ultimate consequences,
eternal death.

How
about you, is it time for you “come to Jesus meeting?”

The
phrase may be used in this way: “Son, this is your only opt ion and if you do
not want to do this, then you can come here and we will have a "come to
Jesus meeting". In other words, there will be consequences to your
decision not to comply with the request.

In
reality that meaning has not changed from the original has it? Jesus came to
call all men unto him, right? For what purpose? To initiate a change in their
lives an actions and to ultimately save them from their sins. He never
threatens, but does point out the consequences for someones “failure to comply”.
The refusal to give our hearts to him, to love him enough to do what he asks
has t he consequences of eternal separation from God.

We
tend to categorize sins (the refusal to obey God’s directions) as either big
sins or little sins, but in reality they all bear the same consequences don’t
they? A good example of this is found in Revelation
21:8, “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and
murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall
have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the
second death.”

A
modern translation puts it this way: “But cowards, unbelievers, the
corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol
worshipers, and all liars, their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur.
This is the second death.”

What
is the second death? It is an eternal separation from God, the source of life,
which by definition is a spiritual death. If you want to understand a true
“come to Jesus meeting,” that is it. Sin of any kind is still sin and our
failure to comply with God’s request brings about the ultimate consequences,
eternal death.

How
about you, is it time for you “come to Jesus meeting?”