"TRUTH IS"

I notice on facebook, and this seems to be mostly from the younger people, something called "Truth is" when someone starts with those two words and then shares something about someone else. It is usually a positive or encouraging statement. So "Truth is", life changes. That covers it really, life, all of life changes. Sometimes good, sometimes, not so much, but all the time, it changes. When I was a teenager, I spent hours on Friday nights "cruising" the local streets. Somtimes it was alone but mostly with one friend or another or even several. Seems the more we had in the car the more roudy we got, not bad, just a little loud, harmless(for the most part),fun. Haven't cruised late on Friday nights much in the last 35 years. But I did this past Friday night. I was waiting for some news on the health of a friend and when the news finally came, it was simply "not the good news we had hoped for...details later". You might as well of slammed a 2 X 4 in my gut. I sat on the couch, numb. Finally, I asked permission to leave the premises. I know that riding out on a Friday night at my age after 11:00 might not sound like the best idea, but for me, it was my theoropy. I still live in the same town I have always lived in. Almost fifty seven years and I am the only one in my family who never left. So, I have this thing I do on special days like Holidays and such. I simply drive around "my" town. Passing by places I lived and played and worked and grew. Houses, buildings, playgrounds, etc. In fact, I seldom ever visit cemetaries where the people I love are buried. In stead, I drive pass places that remind me of them. Places where memories spring forth that provoke smiles or tears or warmth or maybe even sober reminders. So Friday night, I simply "took my pill" ... I drove around "my town". Smiling here and tearing up there and remembering all in between. My theoropy includes houses that are gone, trees that have grown, parks that are no more, roads that have changed and expanded, stores that have closed, new places that replace the old ones. I remember favorite eating places and hangouts. I remember bicycle rides and blocks I jogged around and sidewalks that were my stage for performing life at it's fullest. The friend that I was thinking about when I left the house ... I drove by the place I remember first seeing him ... I drove by places that reminded me of him, houses he lived in, our favorite eating place that is no longer there, the front door of the house that served as an annex for a church where I stayed all night for a 24 hour prayer vigil when he first came into my life. I smiled, I laughed and I cried ... then I came home. Life is better and richer for me because of my friend. Life changes ... love strengthens ... tears cleanse and God is good ... All the Time! And "That's the Truth"!

Can I eat a Pig?

As a result of a statement I made on facebook, two friends of mine (who admittedly do not share my views) asked [respectfully] that I address the issue of the Old Testament and it's relevancey to today.I am grateful for their desire to hear my thoughts and hope I can make some sense for them. The question that came up dealt with the fact that in view of the same-sex marriage issue, many people are quoting from Leviticus chapter 18 where the view there is quite harsh on the issue. So if we take that literally, what about the dietary laws set in chapter 11 and the purity of blood issues (women's monthly visitor... ok, I know that's corny, but hopefully you smiled a little)and there are many other things that could be added to the list. Now, please understand, I am not a scholar or even a theologian but simply a lifetime student of the bible and I confess to you there is much I do not fully grasp & likely will not until I am made whole in eternity. Remember in Exodus, the book that preceeds Leviticus in our bible, Moses, by direction from God, has led His people from Egyptian bondage and are heading to the promised land. (Took them a while to get there due to there own lack of trusting what God had promised). In that time, God presented the commandments to Moses and then gave Moses specific instructions on constructing a tabernacle (which by the way means "tent" or "residence"). The tablets (10 commandments) were placed in a box (an ark, which means box) and on top of it were golden cherubim facing each other and that is called the mercy seat. The ark was placed in a special place in the tabernacle (of course the tabernacle was portible) and that is where God would meet with the priest when they would sprinkle blood on the seat for the atonement for sin. The tabernacle (and later the Temple) would become the place where God would dwell and meet with the High Priest on behalf of the people. The people we are referring to here are the Israelites who God had chosen. Remember it began when He made a covenant with Abraham and promised him a promised land...Caanan...Israel. Now, in Leviticus, God is giving instuction to Moses and to be passed to the Israelites on Holiness and purity. Understand at this point God is setting up standards for the Israelites that will set them apart from all other people groups (again they were His chosen people). These laws would not be easy and they may not make sense to our culture, but they were meant to be exclusive in their purpose of identifying and blessing the Jewish people. (By the way, there were provisions for non-Jews to become converts into that chosen people group...but that's for another day) So in Chapter 11, God deals with physical purity and he lays down the dietary laws. In Chapters 12 and 15 he refers to blood issues including the woman's purification period (which aint a bad idea to me...just saying... smile again). The important thing here is to remember these laws were specific to the Jews. Other people groups were not held to these standards. Then Israel shunned God for so long, constantly disobeying His desires and refusing His Blessings ... an example is the very journey in Exodus ... God promised the land, sent them to it, they sent 12 spies to check out the land and 10 came back with negative reports and refused to go in... 2 reminded them of God's promise,,,they wanted to kill the two positive spies. So they wandered for 38 more years (total of 40) in the wilderness... none of the men above 20 years old at that juncture made it into the promised land 40 years later except the 2 positive spies. That is indicative of how the Jews treated God and His cammands. There are 400 years of seperation from the last book of the Old Testament to the New Testament. 400 years of silence from prophets. The New Testament ushers in a major change God's plan. The focus is now starting to move off of the Jewish people. The Jewish leaders were not happy with Jesus' teachings and actions that seemed to go against the laws they knew (Now there were many laws that the Jews themselves had made up and were enforcing that did not come from God) . They even conspired to have Him stopped and killed if necessary. Jesus said in Matthew 5:17 that He did not come to DESTROY the law but to FULFILL it. So all that the law had been designed to do ... act as a mirror for people to see their condition, He now came to complete by offering Himself as the final and perfect sacrifice. In Mark 7:18&19 Jesus removed the dietary requirements that had been established in Leviticus. "...Thus He decalred all foods clean." (King James says "purifying all foods") [My quotes come from the NASV by the way... just a little more modern translation than the KJV] Then God affirms this new idea to Peter in Acts 10:15 when He tells Peter not to call what He had provided unclean. So, why would God change His mind about this? Good question. Remember, God made a covenant with the Jews and gave them boundaries (commandments) by which to lead them towards holiness. In Leviticus 11:44&45 He says "I am the lord your God. Consecrate (set apart) yourselves therefore and be Holy, for I am Holy, and you shall not make yourselves unclean with any of the swarming things that swarm on this earth. For I am the Lord (First time He has said this) who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God; thus you shall be Holy for I am Holy." HERE IT IS... After this statement, He says those words "I am the Lord your God ... be holy as I am holy." about 50 more times in Leviticus. The issue is seperation from all sin and a lifestyle of seeking holiness. In Luke 19:41-44 Jesus entered Jerusalem which represents all of Israel and wept over the city because the nation of Israel never got it. At that point all things changed. Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice to atone for sins once and for all. No more need for sacrificing animals as Jesus fulfilled all of that requirement. Now Jesus establishes His church and says the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. This does not mean the Old Testament is not relevant, it very much is. But the rules of seperation and purity for mankind is now found in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Jesus says in John 14:6 "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me." Those are His words and leave no room for any other so-called diety. John 1:12 is also very clear where it says "But as many as received Him (Jesus), to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name." Romans 10:9&10 says "that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved (John 1:12) for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. So this is why I originally said on facebook that if I believed the bible to be true, and I do, wouldn't you be mad at me or hurt if I did not share it with you so you too could have eternity with Jesus. And if I am wrong then how much worse off is my life...none! But if you are wrong, how much worse off is your life and the answer to that terrifies me. Now in closing, so if Jesus fulfilled the O.T. requirement of dietary laws and animal sacrifices in the New Testament doesn't that apply to homosexuality as well? The answer is clear as you read from the New Testament in Romans 1:24-28. It not only supports the O.T. teaching on the subject, it clarifies it. I absolutely detest the idea of anyone abusing and physically attacking homosexuals. I would never ever, stand by and allow that to happen in my presence without involving myself. I have held the hands of many homosexual friends during their times of grief and will do so again. But I will also never support it as an acceptable lifestyle because of my biblical belief. I hope this helps to at least shed some light on my position and my heart. Thank you ladies for asking. One final thought... Paul tells us of a "peace of God" we can have in Philippians 4:7 which is made available to us whe we have made "peace with God" in Romans 5:1 ...by faith through Jesus Christ. So, I wish for all who read this ...Peace! P.S. The answer is yes! I can eat the pig... okay I would be better off perhaps if I didn't...but I can.

I Believe!

I had some things on my mind and decided to write a blog to find that it has been exactly a year ago today since my last blog. Wow. So, I thought I'd just share some random thoughts... here we go ... I believe Jesus Is God and He is eternal, past and future ... does that make me an idiot? I believe in Creation and a young earth ... does that make me ignorant? I believe marriage is clearly outlined in the scripture as being between 1 man & 1 woman ... does that make me a bigot? I believe that Jesus is the ONLY way to Heaven ... does that make me narrow-minded? I believe that I am supposed to live out my beliefs in love ... does that make me weak? I believe I am supposed to follow God's commandment to share the message of salvation ... does that make me arrogant? I believe we are living in the last days ... does that make me an alarmist? I believe that God can save anyone on earth who ask Him ... does that make me naive? I believe Hell is real and Heaven is too ... does that make me gullible? I believe that I can respect others but should not compromise God's Word is doing so... does that make me inflexible? I believe that I am a sinner saved by Grace of which I do not deserve ... and that makes me very Grateful! God Bless [P.S. By the time I sent entered this post it is the next day... see first sentence]

America Wins!

So tonight two country music singers face off against each other in a major competition. Someone wins and someone loses and the season will be over...end of story!

Well, maybe it is the end of that part of the story but there is more to the story and it may well turn out that tonight's competition may just be the beginning of a new story.

I know not everyone watches American Idol and I also know some people struggle with the title itself and I understand that. We shouldn't have idols even though we all ... oops, that's a different subject for some other blog.

However, this show is about undiscovered young talent having an opportunity to compete and to show their abilities to the world. Some very successful entertainers today are a result of this show.

Now to the more of the story part of this article. This is the first time that the final two contestants have been specifically country music artists. They are both from the south, one from North Carolina and the other from Georgia. They are the youngest two contestants to be in the final. They have outlasted older and more experienced performers to be where they are tonight.
Also, they are both being referred to as Christians and very conservative in their lifestyles.
They were favored at the audition stage and have endured to the last show together as young, family oriented, Jesus loving teenagers who are setting an amazing example.

Now that in itself is worth talking about, but lets look at the rest of the dynamic of this story.

Week after week after week, American Idol has brought on some of the edgiest , sexually explicit and might I say raunchiest performers to try and sway the voting audiences to elevate that garbage as what America wants to hear. Scantly dressed, girating and grinding and just plain vulgar is how I felt many of those acts came across. I was watching the show to celebrate the young talent and the producers are making sure to soil the whole thing with stuff I find offensive.

And, at least for this year, it hasn't worked! America has screamed out loud "Give us Scotty and Lauren". They have done so by casting record high votes to insure these two young, clean and highly talented perfomers have a chance to show their gifts and bring glory to God in doing so. In fact that is what Scotty is quoted as saying "I just pray that God will use me on stage. I do everything for His glory, because He is the reason I am here."

Well said Scotty and well done to you both! No matter the outcome tomorrow night... America wins!

Passion

What word can be applied to all of the following scenarios?

Commitment to one's occupation
To the point of pushing all else aside.

A desire for sexual sensation
Until fully complied.


An hatred for an opposing posture
to the point of violence and disrespect.

A love for all of nature,
to enjoy, record and protect.


A delight in certain food,
which makes waiting almost painful.

A determination to be rude,
arrogant, haughty and disdainful.


A burning to right a wrong,
and to be there at all cost.

A desire to live out a song,
and in love allow self to be lost.


Power to control all things,
and have others to you to bow.

Humility and all that it brings,
and respect for others to vow.


Curse the conviction of others,
and desire a great physical loss.

To die to make men brothers,
as Christ did on the Cross!


There is one word that can be used,
to answer the original question.

That word can not be confused,
all of the above fall under "Passion".


We are all passionate about something and it is not always a positive and lovely thing. Check your heart and your passions and the effort you make in living your passion out. Jesus was passionate enough to die for us. May we be passionate enough to live for him.

Challenging Times

So, it's been an interesting week.
Our president decides that laws on the books that were established by senate & house votes and signed into law by a Democratic President only apply if he says so. So he instructs his Attorney General to ignore a law on Family Values. King Barack Hussain Obama... unbelievable.

Out of nowhere, at least I didn't see it coming, is this obsene increase in gas prices. Check out the gas companies profits for the last couple of years and see how you feel about those increases.

Are we the people just crazy or what?

There is an amazing amount of unrest happening around the world today. Eygpt & Lybia have been the most news worthy adding to all the current hotspots in the world.

Some dude moves to the U.S. and plans to kill a bunch of folks in Texas, including a former president.

Have you noticed the weather lately. Some of the most active weather patterns and events this winter then we have had in years. Included in that is the fact that one day you can wear flops and shorts and the next you are doning a scarf and leather coat.

States across our country are taking hard stands on difficult issues and are faced with problems we never dreamed of. Many are simply facing what would put a family economy in bankruptcy.

Road rage is unbelievable and very very frightening.

TV commercials today would have been listed as "soft porn" just a few years ago.

On and on I could go but you may start to feel that I am practicing for a position in the National Pessimist Organization of America, but really all I'm trying to say is... "Redeem the time for the days are evil..."
Be ready ... be watching ... be praying ... be sharing ... and be close to God through His Son... for the time surely draweth nigh!

Blessings

The Precious State of Life

How tortured must a soul be to come to the place where they are convinced they have but one option?

With our normal eyes in place, life is a beautiful thing. Surely there are distractions, obstacles, road blocks and even a roadside disruption from time to time. Those things tend to shape us, sharpen us and shake us into being what we are designed to be.

With normal eyes we see flowers and birds and the smiles of children. With normal eyes we see the cracks in the walkway and the bumps in the road and the ice-cream stand on the corner. With normal eyes we see the outsretched hands of a friend, the gentle wave of a neighbor and the rushing wave of the sea shore. With normal eyes we see the evil of the world and are warned, we see the comfort of the Word and are warmed. With normal eyes we see the rock in front of the mower, the glass too close to the edge and the remote control.
It is never all too easy and without it's challenges, but yes sir, life is beautiful as seen by normal eyes.

But then there is that turn from focus. Whatever the cause and whatever the staying power of the longivity of being out of focus, the ability to see life's beauty begins to fade. Something inside changes.

Each of us could draw up long lists of reasons that people under various circumstances would chose to end their own story. No matter our list and no matter their reasons, the unfortunate truth is their story does not in fact end. In many ways it may just begin and now they would have no input to the remainder.

For those who remain, their is no end or perhaps an end that doesn't end and that just doesn't seem fair. But what good would assigning new guilt be to one who can no longer recieve it and surely did not need it had they chosen to stay.

My heart aches for those who remain. My prayer is for gentle showers of forgiveness, peace and even joy to rain down on the dry, broken spirits of the hurting.

May our thanks be to God for His attitude that says "Come unto me all you who labor and are heavily burdened and I will give you rest."