Yee-HAa!\

This one will stretch your mind, I ASSURE YOU. tHE QUESTION: wHat's wrong with RACHEL'S KEYBoARD NOW?

tHIS DISFUNCTION IS HAppening on severAL LEVELS. tHE ONE YOU Can see AND Can, with some flexATION OF THE GRay mATTER, GUESS. tHERE are other things hAPPENING, THOUGH WHICH YOU Can't see AND i DON'T Care to expound.

CAN YOU GUESS?

hERE IT IS: gOD IS ONCE agAIN TEaching me something: paTIENCE (DUH) and humility. Holly wAS TELLING ME about this problem, AND i THOUGHT SHE Was just inADVERTantly hitting a WRONG KEY. i Had to humble myself, AFTER Taking A REDICULOUS amoung of time to write A SIMPLE EMail, AND apologiz.+e to her for disbelieving her struggle AND WRITING IT OFF as simple, unwARRanted griping.

God, thANKYOU FOR MY COMPUTER, and my husbAND and my kids (ORDER INSIGNIFICant). ThANK YOU FOR TEaching me humility in unexpected wAYS. You ARE the greAT and wonderful God.
CreATE IN ME a cleAN HEart thAT IS alwAYS GRateful, AND FROM WHICH SPILLS FORTH "only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen" TO yOUR GLORY.
In Jesus nAME, Amen

But What Does God Say?

While I can observe others and ponder what is going on in their minds based on what I see in their countenence and actions, I still KNOW nothing. God, on the other hand, not only sees what is on the inside, He also made them. He knows how He created the beings to be and can discern their innermost being. When we want to know about something, we should seek God's wisdom. (Thanks to Paster Bayly for pointing me back to the Bible when I would lean on my own understanding.)

I have already stated my opinion and erred my views. I thought about deleting that post, just because, well, who cares? In real life, though, you can't take back words, really. They have been said, written, posted. So they stand, and are about to be overshadowed by the Word of God. Gird up your loins, God has something to say about this:

Lets start here in Matthew 5.

Verse 14 "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.
15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.
16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

This is very strange; it sounds as though the world will either willingly or unwillingly admire you if you faithfully shine, especially coming on the heels of what Jesus had just said:

in verses 11 "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
and 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."

It might be helpful to see verses 14 through 16 in another place in Scripture. In I Peter 2:11&12, the idea is expanded just so subtly:

11 Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.
12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

Would that be the day when...

9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11)

From the beginning of time, there has been this relationship between the children/followers of God and the enemies of God (which you once were...). Cain, in Genesis saw that Abel's acts were righteous, and hated him. Examples like this pepper the old testament narratives, this one is easy to find though, because it is so explicit.

The Psalms are full of statements of this relationship. Some of the most obvious follow:

13 You have made us a reproach to our neighbors,
the scorn and derision of those around us.

14 You have made us a byword among the nations;
the peoples shake their heads at us.

15 My disgrace is before me all day long,
and my face is covered with shame

16 at the taunts of those who reproach and revile me,
because of the enemy, who is bent on revenge.

17 All this happened to us,
though we had not forgotten you
or been false to your covenant. (Psalm 44)

6 You have made us a source of contention to our neighbors,
and our enemies mock us. (Psalm 80)

22 Remove from me scorn and contempt,
for I keep your statutes.

23 Though rulers sit together and slander me,
your servant will meditate on your decrees.

24 Your statutes are my delight;
they are my counselors. (Psalm 119)

At the same time, there are the wonderfully familiar words of Psalm 23 which give us hope in God for this life and beyond:

5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.

6 Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.

Then we have the words of Jesus:

21 "Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. 22 All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 23 When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another. I tell you the truth, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
24 "A student is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for the student to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebub, how much more the members of his household!" (Matthew 10)

12 "But before all this, they will lay hands on you and persecute you. They will deliver you to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name. 13 This will result in your being witnesses to them. 14 But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. 15 For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict. 16 You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. 17 All men will hate you because of me. 18 But not a hair of your head will perish. 19 By standing firm you will gain life." (Luke 21)

18 "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. 20 Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. 21 They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the One who sent me. 22 If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however, they have no excuse for their sin. 23 He who hates me hates my Father as well. 24 If I had not done among them what no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. But now they have seen these miracles, and yet they have hated both me and my Father. 25 But this is to fulfill what is written in their Law: 'They hated me without reason.'" (John 15)

Actually, we could stop there, but then we have the words of the Apostles, inspired by the Holy Spirit of God:

11 This is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. 12 Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother's were righteous. 13 Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you. (I John 3)

...And the Word of God through the Prophets:

7 O LORD, you deceived me, and I was deceived;
you overpowered me and prevailed.
I am ridiculed all day long;
everyone mocks me.
8 Whenever I speak, I cry out
proclaiming violence and destruction.
So the word of the LORD has brought me
insult and reproach all day long.
9 But if I say, "I will not mention him
or speak any more in his name,"
his word is in my heart like a fire,
a fire shut up in my bones.
I am weary of holding it in;
indeed, I cannot.
10 I hear many whispering,
"Terror on every side!
Report him! Let's report him!"
All my friends
are waiting for me to slip, saying,
"Perhaps he will be deceived;
then we will prevail over him
and take our revenge on him."
11 But the LORD is with me like a mighty warrior;
so my persecutors will stumble and not prevail.
They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced;
their dishonor will never be forgotten. (Jeremiah 20)

I think that the overwhelming evidence of Scripture would indicate that any favorable vibes from the World toward Christians are either
*God's providence in the present world,
*the result of proclaiming "peace, peace" when there is no peace,
*the day has arrived when "every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the Glory of God the Father."

But be comforted, brother, for

4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5 They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.

And

3 This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, 4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. (I John 5)

So, do they love you more than Him?

What do I think they think?

The point of this post: I don't want to just wave the flag of my own opinion to no purpose. I don't think that Christian's ought to be looking for trouble, you know, imagining persecution when there is only annoyance at their duplicity. I also don't think that Christians ought to be under the impression that unbelievers secretly admire them, unless this is true.

I also don't think that Christians who receive persecution due to the faithful proclamation of the gospel, ought to whine about that, but rather rejoice as Christ said.

It all started with the "Christmas, 1988, N Train" post below, taken from the BaylyBlog by permission. (This blog is that of Paster Tim Bayly of the Church of the Good Shepherd in Bloomington Indiana and his brother Paster David Bayly of Christ the Word Church in Toledo Ohio.) I don't read the New Yorker, and when I have seen New Yorker comics either on blogs, or whole calendars full of them, I generally don't get them. I am not a New Yorker, I guess. This post, however, I found completely fascinating and compelling.

This raises the question: What does the World think of Christians, Christianity, and God?

My reasoning: I do not think that Polycarp's accusers would actually burn him alive if they secretly admired him, and they certainly would not have filled a stadium with people anxious to see this spectical! Examples like Polycarp go on and on.

Personal experience: A discussion at work over lunch turned to Christian witness. One person present has a sister who is always bringing up church and Jesus to him. He spoke of his sister with contempt in his voice and face. This is a man whom I have never seen or heard referring to someone with contempt. This prompted another person to express hatred for people who try to convince others of the gospel (AKA: force their religion/morality on them). Again, this is a person who, at least in my presense, is generally soft-spoken and sweet. She spoke harsh words tinged with hatred.

At Planned Parenthood one day, when there was a Pro-Abortion protester present, I conversed with some of my fellow protesters about this young woman's motives. These other folks held the opinion that the opposition actually, at some level, sees the wisdom or rightness of the anti-abortion cause. This young woman and others on Thursday mornings have made gestures and comments, they go by shaking their heads in digust, they laugh at the anti-abortion protesters. As one who has been indoctrinated into the American Way over the past many years, spending more time in the kingdon of this world than in the Kingdom of God, I can say with certainty that these people are not on any level, seeing the point. They laugh not out of nervousness that they realize their error, but refuse to face it. They laugh because they recognize that we are fools. They shake their heads not because they are secretly resenting their inability to turn to what they know is right, but because they know we are complete idiots, and cannot fathom someone clinging to these archaic and socially harmful principles.

It doesn't matter what I think, though. What does the Word of God say? It is amazing that God made everything, and therefore is THE expert on what is, and how things work... When He has something to say about something, He is right.

Coming up: What does God say that the World thinks about us?

Kindling Polycarp Incandescence (III)

Why do I keep taking about fire, and why did I site these martyr deaths? Put your lighter away, I am not suggesting we light the night sky with ourselves, at least not until it comes to that. I am suggesting that we need to be willing, no; proactive about making a specticle of ourselves.
For an excellent and challenging sermon on this go here and download the sermon for October 23, 2005. Tell me if it is just me, or is this a haunting challenge? (How did he know about my mother-in-law, and my boss?...eerie!)

Will we in 2006 set ourselves ablaze for Jesus? It aint no big deal!

11 "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
13 "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.
14 "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.
15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.
16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
(Matthew 5:11-16)

Kindling Polycarp Incandescence (II)

Others willing to set themselves on fire for Christ:

Polycarp:
(Kuiper, B.K.; The Church in History; copyright 1951 by The National Union of Christian Schools, Grand Rapids, MI; pp. 62, 63)

Polycarp was the last of those who had been personally taught by the apostles. He was arrested and brought into the amphitheater in Smyrna, which was filled with an immense multitude. Since there were no images of gods in the houses of worship of the Christians, the heathen rightly concluded that the Chirstians did not believe in the existence of the gods; and so they accused them of being atheists... The procunsul reminded Polycarp of his great age, and urged him to show his penitence by joining in the cry of "Away with the atheists!" Polycarp looked straight at the excited crowd, pointed his finger at them and cried, "Away with the atheists!"

Then the proconsul said, "Revile Christ, and I will release you."

But Polycarp answered, "Eighty and six years have I served Him, and He has never done me wrong; how can I blaspheme Him, my King, who has saved me? I am a Christian."

To the crowd the proconsul then proclaimed, "Polycarp has confessed himself to be a Christian."

The crowds yelled, "Let him be burned!"

Wood was collected and made into a pile. Polycarp asked not to be fastened to the stake. "Leave me thus," he said. "He who strengthens me to endure the flames, will also enable me to stand firm at the stake without being fastened with nails." The wood pile was lighted. While Polycarp prayed with a loud voice, "Lord God Almighty, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, I praise thee that thou hast judged me worthy of this day and of this hour to participate in the number of thy witnesses, and in the cup of thy Christ," the flames consumed him. Polycarp's martyr death took place in the year 155.

Timotheus:
( http://www.innvista.com/culture/religion/earlmart.htm )

He endured a multitude of tortures. Then he was condemned to be consumed by a slow and gentle fire. Throughout it all, he exhibited an undeniable proof of his sincere devotedness to God. (352)

Kindling Polycarp Incandescence (I)

From the BaylyBlog>, an example of one setting himself on fire for Jesus:

...where will you take tidings of comfort and joy this (year)?


Christmas, 1988, N Train

A young woman we know writes: It was the gilt-edged pages that gave him away. Most people who read the Bible on the subway have a small pocket edition and keep it to themselves. This young man looked as if he had come away with the family King James. Otherwise, he was ordinary-looking; gray jacket, plaid scarf, blue jeans, white sneakers, bristly brown hair; a gold wedding band. He waited until the N train had pulled out of the Queensboro Plaza station and was under the East River, and then he read aloud, "In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus…" A groan went out from my fellow-passengers.

Talk about a captive audience. The train was too crowded for people to switch cars. And New Yorkers will put up with all sorts of things rather than give up their seats on the subway. I couldn’t help thinking that the young man was lucky there were no maniacs aboard and no piles of stones at hand. But no matter how you feel about being force-fed the gospel under the East River it holds up better than the Times or the Post or the subway ads for Dr. Zizmor, dermatologist. Anyway, no one moved. No one said, "Oh, shut up." No one wanted to be identified as an irreligious loner at Christmastime.

I found myself criticizing the young man’s intonation. He had a good strong voice, but the words rocked up and back unvaryingly: "…to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child." When he was done, and the shepherds had rejoiced, he changed--thank goodness--his rhythm. He started singing "Joy to the World." He sang two full verses of it, again in a good, strong voice. But no one joined in. I was tempted, partly because I felt sorry for him--singing in the face of so much hostility--and also because I’m a sucker for actual human voices raised in song, as opposed to canned carols such as one hears in Doubleday (pa-rum-pa-pum-pum) and in Barnes & Noble (gloh-o-o-o-o-oh-o-o-o-o-oh-o-o-o-o-oh-ria). But I was sitting next to a man rigid with pain and fury at having his subway meditations interrupted, and I felt sorry for him, too. Especially when the young man finished singing and began to preach, reminding us that we were all God’s creatures on the N train and that for each of us He had a plan. God’s creature next to me was probably thinking that he didn’t take the subway to fall in with God’s plan--he took the subway to get to Fifty-ninth and Lexington.

(“The Talk of the Town” in The New Yorker, Dec. 26, 1988.)

2005 Lessons

Here's what I've learned in 2005. Some of these things I have learned before.

1) God is good.

2) Every Man is depraved. (Ladies, this means us too) This unpacks itself in "new" ways each day. Just look around...no, just inquire within!

3) How to die to myself. This is one that must be relearned often, because I grew up in the 70's and we are very selfish. Well, it might be because I was born of Adam, and we tend to be very selfish; but those of us born of Adam and raised in the 70's were not taught to inhibit our tendencies as were other generations and Southerners. Also each time God gives me to put others first, it feels different, so it has not become routine; I can still justify seeking my own way in my depraved heart (see #2).

4) I cannot save anyone. I knew that, but each new realization feels freshly learned.

5) The foxes have holes, but the Son of Man has no where to lay his head. So what am I doing in my comfort zone? I have learned to take little baby steps out of my comfort zone, and trying not to look back at others who remained, lest my feet slip, and I fall. I still cling to many security blankets, but they are rubbish and I seek to set them ablaze!

6) Just because I can say something, doesn't mean I should. I think this has to do with #3, but more to do with taming the tongue and guarding my heart...no, I think all that flows from the abundance of the heart, which is deceiptful above all things and desparately wicked and filled with pride and seeks itself. (As you can see, I have a lot to learn.)

7) I haven't learned how to serve others selflessly, but I have learned that that is what I should seek.

8) I haven't learned not to fear man, but I have learned to hate that fear, and to recognize and re-proportion it. I nearly had a heart attack one day when I struggled within myself about inviting someone to Christmas service at church. I failed, and when they walked away, I started breathing again and my heart started pumping again. God is so merciful and patient with me; a heart attack would have been appropriate.

9) I have learned that a religion that does not touch every aspect of your life is as useless as a necklace. If it doesn't change the way I think about absolutely everything, and the way I behave, and the way I treat others, then it might as well be a television show that I can turn on or off. Therefore, I have become less afraid of politics. Previously, political discussions were frightening to me because they were based on social and economic issues and rhetoric and dogma. These things felt like shakey ground. This year I learned about not answering a fool according to his folly. If my religion, my God is anything, then He will shape my response to this world and its issues. Politicians, everyone of them, have agendas and each issue needs to be, separately, sifted through God's Word. I have always resisted clinging to labels like Conservative, Liberal, Republican, Democrat. Now I have a firm foundation to stand on, because I can place this aspect of life in these United States on that Foundation as well.

10) It aint no big deal to set yourself on fire, and why would you for anyone but for Jesus. To set yourself on fire is to make a fool, a spectical of yourself, even to your own demise. But you see, to fear appearing the fool is to fear man more than God (Matthew 10:27-29).* To fear your own demise as a result of serving Christ is to go into hell whole (Matthew 5:29-30).** Recently someone told me about Jim Elliott. I haven't read his story, but I intend to. I was told that when he and his group were going back into the hostile tribe in the jungle, they were faced with the decision of whether to take guns with them for their protection. They decided not to, leaving them on the ship (it was a plane). The reason? They were ready to face eternity, and the people they were going to were not. Wow...isn't that what Jesus was talking about when he said, "For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matthew 16:25-26) Casper Ten Boom, when offered immediate release from the Nazis told them that if they released him, he would immediately go out and find someone who needed to be saved, and save them from the death camps. He was ablaze, and not hiding it under a bushel, either.

What have you learned in 2005?

*27 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. 28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny[a]? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. (Matthew 10:27-29)

**29 If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell. (Matthew 5:29-30)

Sword Drill!

Does anyone know what a sword drill is? I have done them several times, and no one jumps in with the answer!

Here is an example from my November post on Job 1&2:

"Sword Drill!
Who said that even if the crops fail and (yada yada yada) yet will I praise Him!(?)"

A month and a half later, I stumble upon the answer on another blog (linked in the title of this post). See especially her post on Contentment from December 7, 2005.

Answer:

Habakkuk 3: 17-19 Though the fig tree should not blossom And there be no fruit on the vines, Though the yield of the olive should fail And the fields produce no food, Though the flock should be cut off from the fold And there be no cattle in the stalls,
Yet I will exult in the LORD, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.
The Lord GOD is my strength, And He has made my feet like hinds' feet, And makes me walk on my high places.

No wonder you all didn't recognize it! Thanks, Anne!

I love this verse. I was thinking it was at the end of Job, but I didn't find it there. I searched key words like crops and praise, to no avail. Who would have thought to look for olives and figs and exalt?

So often I am content when things are going my way, when I feel like I have blessing flowing from heaven. My kids are acting right and the pay checks are steady and the bills are paid. What if all that were cut off? Then would I exalt in the Lord, the God of my salvation? Would I, like Job, accept evil from the Hand of God along with the good?

Oh, God, create in me a clean heart that I would find joy in your blessings now, and consider the trials of this life nothing compared to the glory to come. I love you.
In The Name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

Mrs. Abraham: She is our mother

Now we in this discussion of Women, are moving from the fictional to the real; from television and movies to the Biblical account of women who exemplify the same points either good or bad.

Galatians 4:28-31
28 Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of promise. 29 At that time the son born in the ordinary way persecuted the son born by the power of the Spirit. It is the same now. 30 But what does the Scripture say? "Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman's son." 31 Therefore, brothers, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.

I Peter 3:5&6
5 For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful. They were submissive to their own husbands, 6 like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her master. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.

Sarai married her half brother and left the city of her youth to go with her father and husband to a strange land, settling in Haran. At the age of 65 she was barren and on the road again, this time under her husband's leading to a land promised by God. She is following her husband to a promised land, the barren mother of a vast nation.

(You must realize at this point that if God were not sovereign, something in this plan would have gone wrong. This is way too intricate a plan to depend on the fickle cooperation of human beings to bring it to fruition.)


At her age, with the hope in God making her beautiful, she was taken into an Egyptian heram, as a sheep to the slaughter, not opening her mouth, apparently. There is no mention of a feminist uprising. There is no hen-pecking, nagging or "I told you so." Trusting God, she obeyed her husband; trusting God, she faced the consequences; trusting God, she fell under His protection and was returned safely to her husband.

At the age of 75 she took matters in her own hands. Yes, God promised Abraham a son. Maybe she had to "take a step of faith" and give up her selfish pride and let another woman bear that son for him. At the age of 75 in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of the drudgery of day-after-day, can you blame her? She looks around and sees other women doing it. It is afterall, her gift to her husband, the Lord will honour her good intentions, won't He?

Was it jealousy or position that made Sarai mistreat Hagar when Hagar was pregnant? Yes, she was provoked, but it seems unbecoming to be abusive.

Why did Abraham give up authority over this matter in taking Hagar to bed (Gen.16:2) in allowing Sarah to mistreat her (Gen.16:6)? Sarah, however didn't act outside of his authority. She inquired of him and he told her "whatever you think is right."

When Sarah was 89 or 90, she was still beautiful (due to her hope in God, according to I Peter) and was taken again to wife a king. Again, trusting God, she obeyed her husband; trusting God, she faced the consequences; trusting God, she fell under His protection and was returned safely to her husband.

It seems in retrospect that Sarah was speaking for God when she told Abraham that the slave's child would not share in the inheritance with her child. Again, she was provoked by the mocking of the boy, was this providential?

In this story, we see Sarah's gentle and quiet spirit. Well, no we don't, but the absence of nagging and loudness would indicate such. If anyone had anything to be loud and whiney about, it was Sarah, I mean, I like camping, but come on! She is so unobtrusive that we need to look closely to see what the New Testatment writers see in her. It is in the abasence of loud that we see her quiet. It is in the absence of pride that we see her humility. It is in the absence of insistence that we see her submission.

What of the times that she put her foot down? Hagar turned out to be a bad idea. From the time she came into the house, a gift from the offending Pharoah, her presence was providencial bad news. If Sarah had not made this faulty intervening decision, then the miracle of God's providence of a child would not shine so bright. If Ishmael had not been born, we would not see the gracious providence of God for those who come from man's folly. If not for the slave woman's son, would we see the wonderful picture of the miracle of salvation as pictured in this alagory in the flesh?

Sarah was a strong woman of God. To say that she was a doormat or any other derogatory term would be just foolishness. It would indicate that the situation was looked at only superficially and with selfish eyes.

Sarah displayed the strength and gentleness, meekness and service that Jesus talked about in taking up your cross daily. She definitely died to herself and looked to the needs of others. She did not live and easy life and faced unknowns that would drive me crazy (although, my future is unknown, I just don't realize it!).

Mrs. Bunker: the rock that held the family together

Edith Bunker was ready, and anxious to do anything for her husband. It was her calling, and she accepted it with joy. She was cheerful and early in the long run of this show, she did not seem to notice when she was despitefully used.

This was a show that either reflected its time or shaped its time, I'm not sure which. (I can say that I, as a micro example of the times, was influenced by television on multiple levels) Television is a very strong indoctinal tool, let no one deceive you.

All in the Family was first seen in January of 1971 and immediately changed the face of television. Not only was this the number one television series from 1971 through 1976, but it also signified an avalanche of other situation comedies that dealt with controversial subjects in realistic ways. Including, Chico & the Man, The Jeffersons, Maude, Good Times and Sanford & Son

The series centered around the Bunker family who lived in a home located at 704 Houser Street in Queens, New York. Archie Bunker was the main character, and what a character he was. He was televisons most famous bigot, crass and down right rude. Yet he was loveable, with a soft side just beneath the surface. Edith Bunker was his somewhat dizzy wife whom he called "Dingbat". Edith put up with Archie and had qualities about her that made her one of television's most unforgetable characters. Also living in the Bunker household were Archie and Edith's daughter, Gloria, and her husband Mike, or "Meathead" as Archie called him.

The stories revolved around many controversial topics including, rape, sex, homosexuality, death, and other topics that were relevant to the 1970's, especially political strife and inflation. Archie Bunker was probably the first character in a situation comedy to use racist remarks referring to blacks and other minorities, yet another first for television.

And, also:

Television was changed forever the night of Jan. 12, 1971, with the premiere episode of "All in the Family." The show's central character, Archie Bunker, was a working-class family man who held bigoted, conservative views of the world. His viewpoints clash with nearly everyone he comes into contact with especially his liberal son-in-law Mike Stivic (or, as Archie delights in calling him, "Meathead"). The two disagree about nearly everything politics, minorities, sex, religion, economics, war, gun control, crime, free speech, women's rights, morality, philosophy and (so it seemed) life in general. Archie's daughter, Gloria, often (but not always) sided with Mike, while his saintly wife, Edith, was the rock that held the family together. Edith was as friendly, reserved, considerate and open-minded as Archie was bigoted, loud, rude and closed-minded; however, the love and faithfulness between them was undeniable. ( http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066626/plotsummary )

As an aside, Archie Bunker was a characature. If they don't know you personally, this is how they see you. Watch yourself, Archie closely guarded his own traditions and beliefs. We however are all about God. Archie made his stand on the sand of his own opinions while we make our stand on the firm foundation, the Rock that saves us. We may agree with some things that Archie said, or that President Bush said or that C.S. Lewis said, but we don't stand on it. We must stand only on the Word of God, and He will make out feet stand firm.

Those around Edith saw how she was treated and tried to get her to stand up for herself at times. If I remember corrctly, toward the end of the show, she began to resent her position and her role in the family. She began to become wise in this age, and therefore unhappy.

I Peter 3:5&6
5 For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful. They were submissive to their own husbands, 6 like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her master. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.

I Corinthian 1:26-31
26 Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."

I have come to understand my own mother in a new light. Not the light of the enlightened '70s, but in the light of God's ways, and so I see her wisdom. She was the rock that held my family together, and that rock was in the bottom of a strong-flowing stream. She held firm, though and her family is still together. Of course our culture has eroded us somewhat, but I pray that God would bless my Mom and bring all of her children to faith in His Son.

Mrs. Barone: The complete package

"Everybody Loves Raymond" including me! It was my favorite show on TV for a couple of years. I am not going to grumble here about its long-running success coming to an end, but I would like to look at why a show like this would be a success.

Everybody Loves Raymond" revolves around Ray Barone, a successful sportswriter living on Long Island with his wife, Debra, 12-year-old daughter, Ally, and 8-year-old twin sons, Geoffrey and Michael. That's the good news.

The bad news? Ray's meddling parents, Frank and Marie, live directly across the street and embrace the motto "Su casa es mi casa," infiltrating their son's home to an extent unparalleled in television history. Frank's favorite expression, "Holy Crap," is shouted at regular intervals, and Marie's "cooking advice" is less than appreciated by Debra. Brother Robert, a divorced policeman, is constantly moving in and out of his parents' house, and loves to drop over and resent Ray's successful career and happy family life. Ray and Debra just wish someone would knock once in a while

Well, that's not the only bad news, and not everybody loves Raymond. Remember Mrs. Incredible? Isn't she incredibly like Debra? Debra does not respect her husband. She tells him what to do, or assumes he knows and is always disappointed with the results. She discredits his accomplishments and abilities in front of everyone, and loudly.

Who would Ray be if Debra supported him? Who would her children become if they could trust and follow their dad? What could Debra, a decidedly strong woman, learn and accomplish if she could let go of her self-sufficiency long enough to learn from her mother-in-law?

That just wouldn't be funny, would it? Peace in the home...not funny. Imagine, in prime time: A woman who is a lover of her husband and kids, a keeper of and a worker at home and who learns from an older woman, while practicing hospitality. Boring!

What is funny? A woman who stays at home with her children (how did that get on prime time?) demanding that the world revolve around her, degrading her weak and trembling husband, while he stammeringly tries to apease her and his mother while looking only to his own interests.

I think this tv show was funny. I enjoyed it thoroughly and without reserve until I noticed these patterns of personal interaction... (What's next: Monk?)

Mrs. Incredible, Mrs. Barone, Mrs. Bunker, Mrs. Abraham, Mrs. Isaac & Mrs. Xerxes

More to come.

Mrs. Incredible: the typical modern-day mom?

Mrs. Incredible

Helen Parr (aka: Elastigirl, Mrs. Incredible):

"Coming to her husband's rescue when the chips are down is the family's lithe matriarch, Helen, who was formerly the ultraflexible Elastigirl. This character was created in part as a celebration of the typical modern-day mom who, says Bird, "has
to stretch in hundreds of different ways each day." To get to the core of Helen's mix of maternalism and stoic strength, Brad Bird trusted the finely honed instincts of Academy Award® winner Holly Hunter."

Well, she was a strong woman, and an independent one. One website stated that she has "deep insecurities regarding her marriage." I wouldn't have said that, but it is a good start for a discussion.

"The Incredibles" is an incredibly cute movie. I like it. When we went to the theater to see it, as we were leaving, discussing it, I remember saying that the movie beat the hype about it, and that is unusual.

I don't think I have watched it again, since seeing it in the theater...maybe once. I watched it again last week, alone. I noticed it the first time, but at a different level I think. If I were to pick one word to describe Mrs. Incredible, it would have to be "angry." From the time she first appears in the movie until the end, her character is dominated by anger.

Where does it come from? It comes from being continually compelled to prove herself. When she first comes on the scene, she has to prove that it was she, and not the man-hero who caught the villain. She is critical and demanding in their marriage and child rearing. She could have been a single parent, with an assistant available in the evening; an incompetant assistant at that.

If she were really confident of her gifts and value, she would be free to use those gifts to save the oppressed and raise her children and serve her husband without needing to have others say, "You da man!" Needing that other-approval is what caused her anger.

There was a scene where the kids got in a quibble at the dinner table. The husband was distracted, and she was trying to control the situation. She was unable to, but her anger was directed at her husband. This reveals what is supported throughout the movie. She has a deepseated disdain for her husband. She does not respect him and will not support him. This comes from pride, again. She's all that, and he is not, but she sees him as competition...crazy.

So, why waste my time with this? Well a couple of reasons:

This, for some reason revealed to me a side of myself. Am I critical of my husband's every move and idea? Why is that? ...crazy.

God, thank you for revealing this sin of pride and selfishness to me. Strengthen me in my prayers for my husband. He is your man in this family. Give me the grace to show him that. Help me to put myself aside and trust You with him. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

Also, this movie is being watched by little girls every day. Some children watch their favorite movie repeatedly, daily. What indoctrination! It is a very strong message of "maternalism and stoic strength."

Oh be careful little eyes what you see...

And They Brought the Word of the Lord

At the risk of loosing you before we get started, and becasue the Word of the Lord is perfect and my best ideas are like dung, we will start with a good portion of Holy Scripture, which is something I should do a lot more. Examine your heart in this matter. What is your respnse to the Word of God? We must determine this before we begin to look around at how others respond to His Word. What you're looking for is a biblical response. Do you respond like the Bible either commands, or demonstrates is pleasing to God? After that, with fear and trembling, we can look around and, seeing a brother in error, or idolatry masked as Christianity, then we can say something; indeed, we must say something!

1 all the people assembled as one man in the square before the Water Gate. They told Ezra the scribe to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded for Israel.
2 So on the first day of the seventh month Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, which was made up of men and women and all who were able to understand.
3 He read it aloud from daybreak till noon as he faced the square before the Water Gate in the presence of the men, women and others who could understand. And all the people listened attentively to the Book of the Law.
4 Ezra the scribe stood on a high wooden platform built for the occasion. Beside him on his right stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah and Maaseiah; and on his left were Pedaiah, Mishael, Malkijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah and Meshullam.
5 Ezra opened the book. All the people could see him because he was standing above them; and as he opened it, the people all stood up. 6 Ezra praised the LORD, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, "Amen! Amen!" Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground. (Nehemiah 8:1-5)

Woe is me, I am undone! I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips:

1 On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and having dust on their heads.
2 Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the wickedness of their fathers. 3 They stood where they were and read from the Book of the Law of the LORD their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshiping the LORD their God. (Nehemiah 9:1-3)

More to the point:
I considered cutting this down a bit, but it is too good, too pure.

1 Then the king (King Josiah) called together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.
2 He went up to the temple of the LORD with the men of Judah, the people of Jerusalem, the priests and the prophets—all the people from the least to the greatest. He read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant, which had been found in the temple of the LORD.
3 The king stood by the pillar and renewed the covenant in the presence of the LORD -to follow the LORD and keep his commands, regulations and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, thus confirming the words of the covenant written in this book. Then all the people pledged themselves to the covenant.
4 The king ordered Hilkiah the high priest, the priests next in rank and the doorkeepers to remove from the temple of the LORD all the articles made for Baal and Asherah and all the starry hosts. He burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron Valley and took the ashes to Bethel.
5 He did away with the pagan priests appointed by the kings of Judah to burn incense on the high places of the towns of Judah and on those around Jerusalem—those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun and moon, to the constellations and to all the starry hosts.
6 He took the Asherah pole from the temple of the LORD to the Kidron Valley outside Jerusalem and burned it there. He ground it to powder and scattered the dust over the graves of the common people.
7 He also tore down the quarters of the male shrine prostitutes, which were in the temple of the LORD and where women did weaving for Asherah.
8 Josiah brought all the priests from the towns of Judah and desecrated the high places, from Geba to Beersheba, where the priests had burned incense. He broke down the shrines [a] at the gates—at the entrance to the Gate of Joshua, the city governor, which is on the left of the city gate.
9 Although the priests of the high places did not serve at the altar of the LORD in Jerusalem, they ate unleavened bread with their fellow priests.
10 He desecrated Topheth, which was in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, so no one could use it to sacrifice his son or daughter in [b] the fire to Molech.
11 He removed from the entrance to the temple of the LORD the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun. They were in the court near the room of an official named Nathan-Melech. Josiah then burned the chariots dedicated to the sun.
12 He pulled down the altars the kings of Judah had erected on the roof near the upper room of Ahaz, and the altars Manasseh had built in the two courts of the temple of the LORD. He removed them from there, smashed them to pieces and threw the rubble into the Kidron Valley.
13 The king also desecrated the high places that were east of Jerusalem on the south of the Hill of Corruption—the ones Solomon king of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the vile goddess of the Sidonians, for Chemosh the vile god of Moab, and for Molech [c] the detestable god of the people of Ammon.
14 Josiah smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles and covered the sites with human bones.
15 Even the altar at Bethel, the high place made by Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin—even that altar and high place he demolished. He burned the high place and ground it to powder, and burned the Asherah pole also.
16 Then Josiah looked around, and when he saw the tombs that were there on the hillside, he had the bones removed from them and burned on the altar to defile it, in accordance with the word of the LORD proclaimed by the man of God who foretold these things.
17 The king asked, "What is that tombstone I see?" The men of the city said, "It marks the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and pronounced against the altar of Bethel the very things you have done to it."
18 "Leave it alone," he said. "Don't let anyone disturb his bones." So they spared his bones and those of the prophet who had come from Samaria.
19 Just as he had done at Bethel, Josiah removed and defiled all the shrines at the high places that the kings of Israel had built in the towns of Samaria that had provoked the LORD to anger.
20 Josiah slaughtered all the priests of those high places on the altars and burned human bones on them. Then he went back to Jerusalem.
21 The king gave this order to all the people: "Celebrate the Passover to the LORD your God, as it is written in this Book of the Covenant."
22 Not since the days of the judges who led Israel, nor throughout the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah, had any such Passover been observed.
23 But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah, this Passover was celebrated to the LORD in Jerusalem.
24 Furthermore, Josiah got rid of the mediums and spiritists, the household gods, the idols and all the other detestable things seen in Judah and Jerusalem. This he did to fulfill the requirements of the law written in the book that Hilkiah the priest had discovered in the temple of the LORD.
25 Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the LORD as he did—with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, in accordance with all the Law of Moses.
26 Nevertheless, the LORD did not turn away from the heat of his fierce anger, which burned against Judah because of all that Manasseh had done to provoke him to anger.
27 So the LORD said, "I will remove Judah also from my presence as I removed Israel, and I will reject Jerusalem, the city I chose, and this temple, about which I said, 'There shall my Name be.'" (II Kings 23:1-27)

In case you're skimming, and want to get to what I'm on about, this is where you should start... and stop. That would be just too pitiful. In case you are here for the word of God, this is where it stops.

In both Nehemiah passages and the II Kings passage, the response to the reading of God's Law was change. Conviction of sin leading to repentance leading to changed behaviour. Oh, to be going along in life thinking you're doing OK, thinking you're doing what you've been taught is right, and to suddenly hear from God's Law that that is so wrong. It would twist our American brains, wouldn't it? It would be like going along thinking that women are most (or only) honorable when they are independent, and self-sufficient, and to be successfully so, a woman is at her best when she is sexually spontaneous, reproductively responsible, and just plain mouthy. Then you read things like Colossians 3, I Peter 2&3, and Titus 2:4&5 which twists your mind and demands a response.

The Word of God is never neutral. It demands a response.

I can imagine a couple of responses:

1) You read that and decide that what you're doing is, if you approach it from a little different angle, you end up in the same place, maybe facing in a different direction. I have heard the Romans mandate against homosexuality "interpreted" as meaning that grown men should not do it with young men or boys and that they shouldn't rape anyone. (See Romans 1:16-32) This response is wrong, unbiblical. It is a twisting of God's word around your behavior, not the twisting of your mind, heart and behaviour around God's word.

2) Upon examining the perfect Word of God, you decide that you understand what it says, and reject it, forthright. "Each man did what was right in his own eyes." You either don't believe it, or don't care. (See Jeremiah 36:8-32) This response is also displeasing to God. We see again and again in Scripture, God judging and punishing persons and people for this rejection of Him and His law. We also have specific commands in Scripture against this response.

3) You fall on your face with a broken heart and throw yourself at the mercy of a righteous and holy Judge. You see those things in your life under a different light and begin chopping great chunks of your former "righteousness" off. You chop off your right hand (quit your job or leave the country club or stop sleeping with your significant other); you pluck out your right eye (cancel cable, stop using the internet, cut up your credit cards); chop off your right leg (quit the track team, trade in that SUV, start riding public transportation) rather than enter hell whole. (Matthew 5:29-30)

What brought this up? What am I on about?

Last Thursday, I went to Planned Parenthood. This is the place where God refines me. This is the purging place of my sin.

Last Thursday, I had to go to the bank before I could get there, and by the time I was there, the large (third Thursday) group of Catholics were grouped on the sidewalk doing their rosary. The friars were conspicuously absent in the biting wind and falling snow. They did not part to let me pass by them on the sidewalk. That was OK. I took my place at the curb and opened my Bible. You know that I struggle with my purpose there, and my activity there. Sometimes I see it with clarity, and sometimes, not.

At one point I noticed a young woman walking northward on the other side of the street. She paused and chided us for being disruptive. She said we should just go home, no one wants to see us, we should leave them in peace. Then she went on mumbling and shaking her head.

The Catholics eventually broke up and as they did so, a mother of about 6 or 7 called to me, thanking me for bringing the Word of God here.

That was really very sweet. She was sincere, but they baffle me! Greater thinkers than I can expound on the error or heresy of the Catholic church, but I can say this: I would never dare to go into battle without the Word of God. I wouldn't dare go there standing on the words or traditions of man...never.

Oh, God, teach me your ways, and establish your truth within me. Let me not stray to the left or to the right and make my feet firm. In Christ Name, Amen.

Jetliner accident kills one

Amazing. Tragedy strikes, and what is your response...what is my response?

Last Thursday, when we were getting heavy snows here in Indiana, a Boeing 737 slid off the end of a runway, through a fence and a neighborhood and hit several cars, but killed only one small boy.

I can so feel for the mother and others left behind by this tragedy. I am thankful for the fifteen and nearly 17 years we have had with our daughters.

The Bible tells us that God knows the number of our days before a single one has come to be. (Ps 139:16) Not forgetting or trivializing the grief that is being suffered by the parents of this child, this surgical-like removal of this child from this earth as opposed to say, the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers where we can reason in our hearts that some of those people were simply caught up in the last day of someone who was near them. This incident is the same as the other. That boys days were known to his creator, and when they were all gone, an airplane was used to remove him from the bonds of earth. In the same way, each of the victims of the 9/11 attack had lived each day that was ordained for him. When they were done, an airplane was used to remove them from the bonds of earth.

When I read this story, I was so much in awe of my God. I was amazed! This is such affirmation of what the Bible tells us about God. There was no note in the paper as to the faith or lack of faith of this youngster. Whether this young one is in the arms of his savior, I must entrust that to God. He is trustworthy. All His judgements are just, for everything He tells us is true. His loving kindness endures forever. Oh, to hold this boy's mother and tell her that God is, and that He loves her; that what He says is true and that He above all can be trusted.

I must give my children to God everyday. I must hold lightly to them, and to my own life here. I will rejoice in my savior all day long.

What's Going On?

Planned Parenthood...Thursdays...Thanksgiving.

What to be thankful for? Empty parking lot and closed doors. Child-proof building. Safety. Peace.

What about last Thursday. It was the week after Thanksgiving and when I got there, there were just a couple of cars in the parking lot and the windows were dark, and there seemed to be no security. A couple of catholic women came along and visited on the sidewalk for a bit. Shortly after I stepped out of the van onto the sidewalk, a black car pulled out of the parking lot and drove away. It had a light by the driver's door like those that police cars have. A few minutes later, it pulled back in and parked right next to me. I continued in prayer and scripture and after my time was up, I waved at the car and saw a hand in the windsheild wave back at me. No other people went in or came out of the building while I was there.

This Thursday, there was a little more activity, and the usual security car was there, but no escorts were visible. I am not there early enough to see the early activity, and there was absolutely no one to ask...no one.

It was very cold. It is "dead week" at the university and next week is finals. There was a storm getting ready to move into the area. I don't know if any of this has anything to do with it. After last week's stillness, there was speculation that the appointed day for abortions had been changed. I don't think so any more. The security car was there today, and some people were coming and going, although I didn't see couple coming. There was a middle eastern looking couple...He came and parked and went in to get her. They came out together and went away. A Coca-Cola delivery truck came, parking in front of the building where Carole usually has her sign and delivered a very small amount of Coke to the building.

I had to struggle with my purpose there. Why was I there last week? Last week the catholics got in their car, to wait for more of them, and when no more showed up, they left. Why was I there?

Why was I there this week? There were no people there this week to speak against the killing of babies. No signs, no rosaries, no other people. Why was I there?

I was there to shine a light in a dark world. I am there to say, "There is a God and He has something to say about this." I am there to pray that God will purify His people and burden them with boldness to testify to His truth.

I was not alone, but I will admit that I was lonely, and cold. Loneliness tends to clarify your thoughts, though.

Job 4&5: Eliphaz/Ignaorance/Joseph Smith/Mohammed

"What think ye?" What kind of question is that? It is a bold and self-promoting question. What think ye? Is that important?

Eliphaz flows with so much thought, speculation, and proverb that in one paragraph his flow of reason may turn upon itself (ie: 5:1-7). I cannot answer every point he make, and I'm not sure it would be the thing to do unless any particular point becomes a stumbling block to someone.

A couple of things stand out to me. Maybe someone who is wiser than I can continue this discussion to everyone's benefit.

Where is your hope?
Eliphaz answers Job's lament of suffering. (Job 4:2-6) As John Bunyan's Ignorance hoped that his good thoughts and ways saved him, Eliphaz points out Job's good works. He states boldly that Job's hope ought to be in his good works. "Should not your piety be your confidence and your blameless ways your hope?" (v.6) After pointing out Job's righteousness and urging Job to cling to it for hope, he then points out that the innocent never perish; this in the face of what Job has suffered. I'm just not sure where he is going with this, and it might be that he had not (in the seven days of silence) thought it out thoroughly.

Test the spirits.

Job 5:12-21 kind of makes me think of Joseph Smith and Mohammed. Who was it that visited Joseph Smith? Who visited Mohammed? I do not think that they were lying. I think they saw someone, but who (this is my theory...not to be confused with knowledge)? Was Eliphaz also visited by a spirit? It was not a spirit of truth. Was he just saying that he was visited by a spirit to give his words more weight?

Clouds without rain

In Job 4:17-21 Eliphaz goes on with his intellectual theology. This is very palatable stuff. but it seems to be irrelevant to the situation at best.

Rather than expose my ignorance, I will stop for now. I will, as time permits look into commentaries and I hope someone will also add comments to help me to understand better.

Please keep in mind that I have never dug into Job 3 - 37 and I am commenting based on my knowledge that God answered in later chapters.

Job 3: The Slough of Despond

I know that God is sovereign, and that He is just and holy and merciful. I KNOW who He is and that what He has revealed to us in His word is true.... And yet, sometimes, I don't feel like it and, following my feelings, rather than my faith therefore, I don't act like it or talk like it. This is a failing on my part, not God's. Sometimes my faith is weak, and sometimes, my focus/purpose is in the wrong place.

Job had, in faith, made statements and rebukes that were right on target in Job 1 & 2. How then can he, in Chapter 3 go to such depths of despair?

Deep, desparate despair: "May those who curse days, curse that day, those who are ready to rouse Leviathan." (3:8)

Deep, dark despair: "May its morning stars become dark; may it wait for daylight in vain and not see the first rays of dawn." (3:9)

Previous-Joy/Comfort-consuming despair: "Why were there knees to receive me and breasts that I might be nursed?" (3:12)

Hope-eclipsing despair: "There (in the ground/grave) the wicked cease from turmoil, and there the weary are at rest." (3:17)

In this depth of despair, this godly man queried: "Why is light given to those in misery, and life to the bitter of soul, to those who long for death that does not come, who search for it more than for hidden treasure, who are filled with gladness and rejoice when they reach the grave? Why is life given to a man whose way is hidden, whom God has hedged in?"

In this query, our society lives. This is why I am afraid of this book. This is precisely why I have avoided it. I hear in the words of Scripture what I hear on the streets of my world.

I know, though that God has included Job's despair in the canon of Scripture for our good; for I know that "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." (I Timothy 3:16&17)

So, if it rubbs me the wrong way, I must be wrong, and rather than shy away, I should dig deeper and ask God to help me understand, or change my heart.

Matthew Henry writes: "The afflicted and tempted Christian knows something of this heaviness; when he has been looking too much at the things that are seen, some chastisement of his heavenly Father will give him a taste of this digust of life, and a glance at these dark regions of despair. Nor is there any help until God shall restore to him the joys of his salvation. Blessed be God, the earth is full of his goodness, though full of man's wickedness. This life may be made tolerable if we attend to our duty. We look for eternal mercy, if willing to receive Christ as our Saviour." (http://eword.gospelcom.net/comments/job/mhc/job3.htm)

Thanks be to God for His unfathomable and everlasting goodness to us.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Job 1&2

How much greater are the thoughts and ways of God, they are beyond finding out! How He condescended to reveal Himself to man! How He condescended to become man and to die for man!

How could an ant understand a man? He cannot. We, of course did not make ants, and have no fluency in their language, but if we did, could the ant understand our motives and powers? I don't think so...Better analogy, could the stone understand us?

In Job, chapters one and two, God reveals something of heavenly activity that so much reveals my own motives and limitations, which I project upon God wrongly. When I look at these chapters, I see Satan baiting God, and God falling for it. I see the bully taunting and the weakling falling for the trap and doing what the bully wanted all along. I am looking through my own eyes.

Forgive me, Father, for I am but a worm, and do not understand you fully. Thank you for revealing more than this of you so that, although we will not know You fully until we are in Your presense, we can understand enough to trust in your goodness, your strength and your all-sufficiency even when we don't quite understand what you're on about. I know that while Satan meant it for evil, you meant it for good. I know that you ordained this test for your servant, Job, and that it was you who sustained him through it. I know that You allowed and received Satan in your throne room and indeed even invited -no, you must have summoned him- knowing what he would ask.

You made the vessel, Job. You created him for your purpose and glory. He was what you made him and was sustained by the faith that you created in him. It was hard for him, like going through a fire.

I, and others, sometimes think of the children and the servants who were killed for the pleasure of Satan and the proving of Job. We worms struggle with this, seeing only the life lived on this soil. Some of us think that it is a sign of your weakness, or just a cruel streak.

Forgive me, Father, for I am but a worm, and do not understand you fully. Thank you for revealing more than this of you so that, we can understand enough to trust in your goodness, your strength and your perfect will. I can understand from what You have revealed, if my feeble mind can remember, that while you made the vessel Job, you also made his children and servants. They were none of them without sin, and Job even made atonement for them, realizing that they probably did sin in their revelry. These vessels cannot say to the Potter, why have you made me thus, and why has my usefulness ended, for surely I was soon to become great; you didn't give me a chance to become the lovely vase I was meaning to be? You have revealed that you know the number of our days, even before one of them has come to be. For a vessel such as Job, that would be more than comforting (is there an English word for this?), but for other vessels made for more common purposes, this would be alarming and such a vessel would fill up with resentment.

Job 1:21
I have always heard the saying, "The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away."

I think that what Job recognized was that it is the Lord's to give, and the Lord's to retrieve or receive.

Job 2:9-10
This is the response to suffering that our culture holds for itself and for those it sees in the throws of suffering. "Curse God and die." It would be better to end it all than to go on in this state. Many think thus for the benefit of others that they see or know. Some think it for themselves and take their own lives. This, in some cases is thought by observers as the gallant exit.

We have forgotten, let us not forget, what Job, through walking so close to God, knowing Him and, therefore trusting Him, knew so well. In his pain and helplessness, he recognized his life partner as a foolish woman. God has revealed that a fool says in his heart there is no God. Mrs. Job did not say it aloud, but her counsel to her husband in his suffering revealed what she believed in her heart. Job turned to his wife, his helpmate in sickness and in health, and asked, "Shall we accept good from God, and not evil?"

In our time and circumstances, we think we need to say things like, "Sweetheart, what did God have to do with this, we live in a fallen world!"

Sword Drill!
Who said that even if the crops fail and (yada yada yada) yet will I praise Him!(?)

We do not need to answer a fool according to his folly. We know the one who is the beginning of wisdom, and would do well to fear Him, and not man, who can only shun us and call us fools, for He makes foolish the wisdom of the wise, and in our weakness His strength is revealed.

Father,
For what we are about to receive from your gracious and loving hand, make our hearts forever grateful. Make our feet to stand.
For Your sake and in the name of Jesus, your Son
Amen

The Sower?

There was a land-owner who owned the land as far as the eye can see, no matter where you went. He gave his servant a large, abundantly full sack of seed, and told him to go out and sow it.

The servant took the large, abundantly full sack of seed and went out-into the back yard. Although the master owned the land as far as the eye can see, the servant had come to think of the back yard as his own.

He set the large, abundantly full sack of seed down and dug up a plot of ground. He made it square, about 10 by 10, just right. He dug up the soil and removed the sod. He tilled and added mulch and manure until the organic content was just right. He worked the soil until it was a pleasure to turn. Then he smoothed it all out, just right. Finally, he made rows, straight and even. Each row was 12 inches from the last one, so he would have room to go between and pull weeds as the plants grew. He stepped back and surveyed his work with satisfaction.

At last he turned around and opened the large, abundantly full sack of seed. He reached in with his left hand and pulled out a handfull of seed and went to the first row. He planted 2-3 seeds per inch all along the row, covering the seed with the rich soil and tamping it down as he went. When he finished with the first row, he went on to the next and planted in the same way. He worked diligently in this manner, row after row, returning to the large, abundantly full sack of seed when his hand became empty.

When all ten rows were properly sown, he closed the large, still abundantly full sack of seed, and stepped back. He surveyed his work with great satisfaction.

He noticed that the sky was clear so he watered the plot. As the days and weeks went by he watered the plot, aerated the soil, weeded the rows, and surveyed his work with great satisfaction.

He put up a scarecrow to keep the birds away from the seed. He built a fence around to keep rabbits from eating the young plants. He even cut down a nearby tree because he noticed that it shaded his plot from the sun in the early afternoon.

As the weeks went by some of the seed rotted because of mildew or fungus in the soil. Some were left exposed by the rain or watering hose and were eaten by birds who were not fooled by the scarecrow. Some grew, but maybe their roots found the rocks that the servant had missed, or they were crowded by a weed that sprang up as quickly as they did; and they remained small and weak, and were scorched by the sun in the early afternoons. Some of the seed grew, strong and straight. These plants produced much fruit --40, 60, 100 times the little that was sown.

"This is what was written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem." (Luke 24:46&47)

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." (Acts 1:8)

The Apostles respond in obedience, even when persecuted:

"The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing that they had been counted worthy of suffering digrace for the Name. Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ." (Acts 5:41-42)