Shadows and hope

Hebrews 10:1, “Since the law has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered year after year, make perfect those who approach.”

Routinely I hear of those practicing the Christian faith attempting to convert the Bible, the Holy Word of God, the foretelling and incarnation of Jesus, as a recipe that we must follow for our salvation. Human history with practice like that is long and storied. There is a simple explanation and it takes the form of humans needing some ‘thing’ to worship and follow. The law or Word of God is not followed so as to gain salvation. The Holy Word of God is the guide of our faith and within its rule we are allowed to share in the limits of our understanding of God. The basic salvific fact is accepting Jesus Christ as Lord of our life and Savior of our life. Once we get that and are moved by the Holy Spirit to yield to His Lordship we will get the rest. Let’s not let the rule of faith be our recipe for salvation. Let’s live into our faith in Christ and live out what He desires for us and in His Kingdom.

Prayer: Heavenly Father thank You for today and for the gift of Your unfailing love for us – Jesus. Soften our hearts to yield to His desire for our lives. In Jesus’ Name we pray. AMEN.

Liar-in-Chief redux

Tonight we will have the State of the Union spectacle. This person sitting in the highest office of the land delivers silvery throated rhetoric that makes my skin crawl. He epitomizes how Satan works, ‘seductively calling Eve to the forbidden fruit.’ His style is smarmy and disingenuous. You cannot believe anything that he says because as we have seen, it didn’t take more than a few days in office for him to realize that he was elected on charisma. He is an empty suit trying to be president. He is failing miserably and creating a greater gulf between voters. It must be his plan to cause civil war within our borders. He’s creating such enmity among folks that the only solution left will be for those who believe that others have more than they will be for the ‘less-thans’ to take from the ‘more-thans.’

America, please do not be fooled by this 21st century Bolshevik and the revolt that he fomenting. He wants nothing more than to turn this nation into a vassal state of the last standing communist power. His clueless approach to economics and his stable of wannabe economists and ‘money-experts’ have mangled the economy. Tonight he’s going to pull a Marie Antoinette stunt and say, ‘let them eat cake (spending freezes and tax credits).’ He’s going to tell us that he’s fighting for us. He lies. That’s the Chicago-way. With Gibbs, Jarrett and Emanuel on his close team of advisors and Plouffe now showing up to help the ‘anointed one’ campaign we can expect more spurious lies of the half-truth variety.

Remember what this liar says tonight. He does not have any interest but his own in mind. He is not a Christian, he is a socialist, and he is trying to destroy our nation.

Prayer Concerns and joys in Christ

Something we can share together.  Respond to this post with your prayer concerns or joys in Christ.  Give first names (or relationship - sibling, spouse,  parent, friend) only; joys or issues and we will take those to our prayer time in Christ.

Our prayer begins this way:  "Loving God we thank you for this day and for Your Son Jesus Christ who redeems us.  Hear our prayer...(add your prayer concern or joy)..."

Respected Leadership

Titus 1:5-9, “I left you in charge in Crete so you could complete what I left half-done. Appoint leaders in every town according to my instructions. As you select them, ask, “Is this man well-thought-of? Are his children believers? Do they respect him and stay out of trouble?” It’s important that a church leader, responsible for the affairs in God’s house, be looked up to—not pushy, not short-tempered, not a drunk, not a bully, not money-hungry. He must welcome people, be helpful, wise, fair, reverent, have a good grip on himself, and have a good grip on the Message, knowing how to use the truth to either spur people on in knowledge or stop them in their tracks if they oppose it.”

This pastoral letter to Titus is insightful. Paul speaks about the work that he left half-completed and why he appointed Titus. I wonder, if we chose our leaders throughout our land as our forbearers were instructed what condition would our society find itself in today? The standards that Paul offers in choosing leaders seems foundational and structurally sound to a moral and holy people. Why can’t we change the course of a nation and begin to choose leaders based upon these principles?

Prayer: Eternal and loving God, we thank You for this day, the day that wasn’t promised. Let us live lives and choose leaders because we are all guided by the same commands that You gave so very long ago in human time. Your love is timeless. Help us see Your authority and take Your authority to do Your holy will. In Jesus’ Name we pray. AMEN.

Broken Covenant

This morning my wife and I were at the orthopedic surgeon’s office. While in the waiting room I couldn’t help but overhear the conversation between a husband and wife. Apparently the husband was supposed to undergo an MRI and had taken an anti-anxiety medication in advance. The office assistant had advised the couple that they would have to wait a bit. After they learned that they would have to wait, the man’s wife was trying to reason with her husband about sharing information with the medical team about his having already taken his medicine. He became nasty toward his wife and ultimately said, “Why don’t you use your brain?” He said it loud enough for anyone around to hear. She got up and walked out. He muttered, “Guess I’ll have to find a ride home.” I sat and stared at this oaf wondering why she would tolerate his antics. He just kept looking down at his phone all the while texting and griping.

The marriage covenant is very simple. You both agree to, “love, honor and cherish as long as you both shall live.” When that or any other portion of the covenant is broken the covenant that the husband and wife made with God and one another is now broken. This man needs to repair the damage that he has done to his wife. His belligerent and condescending behavior toward his wife was a despicable act. I pray God’s healing on their relationship, his repentance and for his wife’s safety and assurance.

Temptation

Matthew 4:1-4, “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Satan is active in this world and life. He won’t stop until he is stopped by Jesus Christ at His Second Coming (or Parousia). As we can tell from reading from Matthew, Jesus was hungry after fasting for forty days and nights. Most of us would be hungry after a one day fast (me included). Satan used Jesus’ hunger as a moment of perceived ‘weakness’ to lure Jesus into his snare and engage Him for his purposes rather than to serve God as Redeemer and Restorer. Jesus put a very quick halt to Satan’s march and gives us in this lesson an understanding of what it takes to live into God’s expectation of us, “One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” We cannot survive merely with sustenance for the physical we are composed of a spiritual self or soul that requires spiritual food or sustenance that only comes from God through Jesus Christ.

Prayer: Loving God, You have made us in Your very image to be fed by Your very hand and desire. Feed us with Your holy will and by Your loving heart. Lead us into Your perfect Way, Jesus Christ, for it is in Jesus Name that we pray. AMEN.

Ohio golfer's scorecard confession earns accolade

“Ohio golfer's scorecard confession earns accolade
Published: 1/24/10, 4:25 PM EDT

MOUNT GILEAD, Ohio (AP) - A scorecard confession that cost an Ohio high school golfer the state championship five years ago has earned him a national sportsmanship of the decade award. Adam Van Houten (HOW'-ten) of Mount Gilead High School in north-central Ohio had finished the 2005 state high school golf championship with a seven-stroke lead when he noticed a mistake on his card. A playing partner had written down a 5 for the 10th hole instead of 6. Van Houten pointed out the mistake to officials and was disqualified because he'd already signed the card. Five years later, Van Houten's act has won him a spot on Sports Illustrated's sportsmanship of the decade list. Van Houten is now a sophomore on the golf team at George Mason University near Washington.”

Information from: News Journal, http://www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com//

Character is what you do when no one is watching. This young man is a credit to his family and his integrity adds a measure of respect for his athletic endeavor. Praise God for him and for Sports Illustrated for recognizing integrity.