Jesus Is ...

Jesus is

He is the First and Last, the Beginning and the End!
He is the keeper of Creation and the Creator of all!
He is the Architect of the universe and
The Manager of all times.
He always was, He always is, and He always will be...
Unmoved, Unchanged, Undefeated, and never Undone!
He was bruised and brought healing!
He was pierced and eased pain!
He was persecuted and brought freedom!
He was dead and brought life!
He is risen and brings power!
He reigns and brings Peace!
The world can't understand him,
The armies can't defeat Him,
The schools can't explain Him, and

The leaders can't ignore Him.
Herod couldn't kill Him,

The Pharisees couldn't confuse Him, and
The people couldn't hold Him!
Nero couldn't crush Him,
Hitler couldn't silence Him,
The New Age can't replace Him, and

Donahue can't explain Him away!
He is light, love, longevity, and Lord.
He is goodness, Kindness, Gentleness, and God.
He is Holy, Righteous, mighty, powerful, and pure

His ways are right,
His word is eternal,

His will is unchanging, and
His mind is on me.
He is my Redeemer,
He is my Savior,
He is my guide, and
He is my peace!
He is my Joy,
He is my comfort,
He is my Lord, and
He rules my life!
I serve Him because His bond is love,

His burden is light, and

His goal for me is abundant life.
I follow Him because He is the wisdom of the wise,
The power of the powerful,

The ancient of days, the ruler of rulers,
The leader of leaders, the overseer of the overcomers, and

The sovereign Lord of all that was and is and is to come.
And if that seems impressive to you, try this for size.
His goal is a relationship with ME!

He will never leave me,

Never forsake me,

Never mislead me,

Never forget me,

Never overlook me, and
Ever cancel my appointment in His appointment book!
When I fall, He lifts me up!
When I fail, He forgives!
When I am weak, He is strong!
When I am lost, He is the way!
When I am afraid, He is my courage!
When I stumble, He steadies me!
When I am hurt, He heals me!
When I am broken, He mends me!
When I am blind, He leads me!
When I am hungry, He feeds me!
When I face trials, He is with me!
When I face persecution, He shields me!
When I face problems, He comforts me!
When I face loss, He provides for me!
When I face Death, He carries me Home!
He is everything for everybody, everywhere,

Every time, and every way.
He is God, He is faithful.
I am His, and He is mine!
My Father in heaven can whip the father of this world.

So, if you're wondering why I feel so secure, understand this...
He said it and that settles it.
God is in control, I am on His side, and

That means all is well with my soul.
Everyday is a blessing for GOD Is!

~Author Unknown

An interesting Tozer

"Has it ever occurred to you that one hundred pianos all tuned to the same fork are automatically tuned to each other? They are of one accord by being tuned, not to each other, but to another standard to which each one must individually bow. So one hundred worshippers meeting together, each one looking away to Christ, are in heart nearer to each other than they could possibly be were they to become “unity” conscious and turn their eyes away from God to strive for closer fellowship. Social religion is perfected when private religion is purified."

A.W. Tozer

"Good" Friday?

Calling the day of the Crucifixion ‘Good’ Friday is a designation that is peculiar to the English language. For example in German, it is called Karfreitag. The Kar part is an obsolete word, the ancestor of the English word care in the sense of cares and woes, and it meant mourning. So in German, it is Mourning Friday. And that is what the disciples did on that day—they mourned.

They thought all was lost.

I’ve read that the word good used to have a secondary meaning of holy, but I can’t trace that back. There are a number of cases in set phrases where the words God and good got switched around because of their similarity. One case was the phrase God be with you, which today is just good-bye. So perhaps Good Friday was originally God’s Friday. But I think we call it Good Friday because, in pious retrospect, all that tragedy brought about the greatest good there could be.

I can see virtue in either terminology. If we call it Mourning Friday, as in German, we are facing reality head on, taking up the cross if you will, fully conscious that the Christian walk is seldom a walk in the park as most all of us know. But if we call it Good Friday, as in English, we are confessing the Christian hope that no tragedy—not even death—can overwhelm God’s providence, love, and grace. Either way seems to work for me!

A Lyrical Commentary on Scandals

These words by James Watkins summarize many of my feelings about the various Christian leadership scandals, but many others in our church universal where individuals are set up for temptation and failure by a system which isolates and flatters them. The church is supposed to be a body–a family–a place of intimacy and accountability. The way that we often do church makes it more like a free market corporation or something like that …. pedestals

Thousands

cheer,
chant,
and clap
as one of their own
is proudly carried toward the
lofty pedestal.
The audience

urges him
up the stairway,
step by step,
higher and higher,
far above the masses
on the prominent platform.
The media is there

with lights,
cameras
and prime-time coverage.
Publishers huddle

around the base,
for they know
pedestal-people
sell well.
The crowds

on satellite hook-ups
hang on
every last word,
for he seems
so close to eternity.
Yet he feels

unsure,
unworthy,
afraid
and very alone . . .
But at that height

no one notices,
no one questions,
no one confronts.
And so,

in a split second,
the trap door swings,
the noose tightens,
the crowd gasps.
Undeterred, the mob moves on

to build more pedestals;
to encourage another
of their own
up the starlit steps.
But mostly

to wonder
why those
at the pinnacle
keep falling
from the heights.
© 1988 James N. Watkins

when you don’t see the whole staircase ...

Faith is taking the first step, even when you don’t see the whole staircase.

Martin L. King

All Pharisees Were Hypocrites???

A person said this to me and it stopped me in my tracks! Let me quote it for you ...

"We, as Christians, need to step back from digging too deeply into the Word... from becoming Pharisees ourselves, and take the Scriptures for what they are.... our guidebook .."

Maybe this has happened to you too ... You are making a point about what God is leading you about a certain point, and you quote scripture, immediately there is a charge of you being a Pharisee! Sheesh!

However ... Not all Pharisees were hypocrites for sure! Many of the parables of Jesus are actually old Pharisaic stories -- sometimes with different endings. The Pharisees were not in trouble because they knew to much scripture its because they added to it and at times even changed what it said. Unlike the Pharisees, Jesus did not allow Jewish tradition to be elevated to the same level as Scripture. He was quick to discard any traditions that contradicted the Word of God. He placed compassion above the stringencies of tradition, and He rebuked hypocrisy and pretense whenever He saw it. But He did all of this from within traditional Judaism and as a part of traditional Judaism.

"Step back and not dig to deeply in the Word? How can anyone possibly love God and not dig into scripture, re dig and dig again! How could someone dig to deeply? I would say most don't dig enough! Being a Christian and not knowing Scripture would be like my 15 year old in a car ...If not now, it will soon be a disaster. A young unlearned young man behind the wheel of a car is a danger to himself as well to you who share the road with him. He is liable to crash injuring if not killing himself and just might take some others with him. This is how an unlearned Christian can be. He is a danger to himself and to those around him. Not because he seeks to destroy or hurt anyone, but because he doesn't have the experience and knowledge. The danger for misinterpretations would obviously be greater. When it comes to the knowing and living the Word of God, the spiritual payoff is enormous ... and freeing! Also scripture leads us to spiritual maturity.

Let me quote here from Hebrews 5:13-14.

13Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. 14But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

Mature believers are the one who can eat solid food and maturity comes when you can take the Word we are feeding on and use it to meet the various challenges, circumstances, issues and decisions of life. What renders a person mature? Being able to make responsible decisions on our own. Like with kids, when you don't have to tell them every little thing they are maturing. When they decide to do it on their own maturity is setting in!

Some thoughts on a Wednesday ...

Sowing the Greed

This is the kind of stuff that drives me nuts! What does God’s word say about such things?

Off of TBN a few weeks ago ...

“You need to send a thousand dollars. If you cannot send a thousand, send five hundred… if all you have is a nickel, wrap it in tissue and put it in an envelope. If all you have is your clothes, send them.”

“If you want the power, you have to sow the seed”

“We are going together into a spirit of wealth.”

“Last night, you sowed to your ability. Tonight, you sow beyond your ability.”

“I need to give because I need favor. I need it because I need an anointing. I need it because I need power.”

“‘I am giving because I want my daughters to be daughters of Zion.’”

“You have got three days to get that into your mailbox. I am not afraid to say this. I am walking in my authority… if you do not postmark it by the tenth, we will not accept it. God says you have three days to get your thousand-dollar seed in the mail.”

“Give it to me and you will live. Give it to me and you will have more than enough.”“If all you have is $79.36, I double-dare you to empty your bank account. Close your account.” ~ Juanita Bynum

It is saying that when you get blessed you will have to look back and say, “When I gave that thousand dollars, God blessed me” Where does God get any glory, if you have to pay him to bless you? As a Christian, I am ashamed that the idea of “sowing seed” has been used to finance use and abuse of hard earned money to support a lavish lifestyle. This kind of thing comes up all the time in talking to and witnessing to those who do not know Jesus as Lord and savior. It’s really sad how even the unsaved can spot a con before we Christians do!

Tim, ending vent before he really gets worked up ...

Every Seventh Letter - TORAH

An interesting thing I found in a blog ... Just because the Bible was originally written in Hebrew/Greek, that does not mean God cannot do wonderful things in His Word in Any language.

FOR INSTANCE. take the book Genesis.. in the original Hebrew language.

Genesis 1:1

what is the 7th letter ?? it is a " T "
what is the 14th letter? it is a " O "
...and the 21st letter ? it is a " R "
....and the 28th letter ? it is a " A "
....and the 32nd letter ? it is a " H "

all I did was look at every 7th letter !

Now.. Exodus 1:1

what is the 7th letter ?? it is a " T "
what is the 14th letter? it is a " O "
...and the 21st letter ? it is a " R "
....and the 28th letter ? it is a " A "
....and the 32nd letter ? it is a " H "

Now .. Leviticus.

Every 7th letter ..

...........???? NOTHING !!!!!! "gibberish" (forgive me Lord ) !!

NUMBERS 1:1

what is the 7th letter ?? it is a " H "
what is the 14th letter? it is a " A "
...and the 21st letter ? it is a " R "
....and the 28th letter ? it is a " O "
....and the 32nd letter ? it is a " T "

DUET: 1:1

what is the 7th letter ?? it is a " H "
what is the 14th letter? it is a " A "
...and the 21st letter ? it is a " R "
....and the 28th letter ? it is a " O "
....and the 32nd letter ? it is a " T "


Look !!!! The first two books are pointing to Leviticus
The last two books of the torah are pointing to Leviticus also

LEVITICUS IS THE TORAH (the law) !!!!

Its amazing the off the wall "gems" one can find in the Bible!

Tim

From Ashes To Roses

I have some time this evening so I thought I would share one of my most favorite passages of scripture ...

The Spirit of God, the Master, is on me because God anointed me.

He sent me to preach good news to the poor,

heal the heartbroken,

Announce freedom to all captives,

pardon all prisoners.

God sent me to announce the year of his grace—

a celebration of God's destruction of our enemies—

and to comfort all who mourn,

To care for the needs of all who mourn in Zion,

give them bouquets of roses instead of ashes,

Messages of joy instead of news of doom,

a praising heart instead of a languid spirit.

Rename them "Oaks of Righteousness" planted by God to display his glory.

will sing for joy in God,

explode in praise from deep in my soul!

He dressed me up in a suit of salvation,

he outfitted me in a robe of righteousness,

As a bridegroom who puts on a tuxedo and a bride a jeweled tiara.

For as the earth bursts with spring wildflowers,

and as a garden cascades with blossoms,

So the Master, God, brings righteousness into full bloom

and puts praise on display before the nations.

In reading the Gospels I am keenly interested in observing the ministry of Jesus Christ, His attitude towards those who were acknowledged, confessed sinners. To the woman that was brought to Him caught in the very act of adultery, He shows great tenderness, understanding and grace. "Woman, where are your accusers?" "Sir, I guess I don't have any." "Well, neither do I condemn thee, go thy way, sin no more." (John 8) Oh, how tender He deals with her. Then there is the woman at the well in Samaria. Now she wasn't the most moral woman around obviously. She had been married to five different men. And then finally decided marriage wasn't for her and so she was just living with a man. And yet Jesus in His dealing with her was so gracious, revealing to her His identity. Oh, the attitude of Christ towards the sinner was always beautiful! He had good news for sinning man and those that confessed and were aware of their sinful state. "Bouquets of roses instead of ashes" indeed!

“Do not watch the petals fall from the rose with sadness...know that, like life, things sometimes must fade, before they can bloom again.”~unknown author

Miracles

I like this quote ....

A miracle is not the breaking of the laws of the fallen world.It is the re-establishment of the laws of the kingdom. -Sourozh

Your C-Factor

This quiz was sent to me from a staunch Calvinist friend of mine and I figured I would give it a shot ... How Calvinist are you?

http://www.trouw.nl/religie-filosofie/nieuws/article2050113.ece

I scored a 56%

Apparently ... I'm not so staunch ....

A Strange Toast Indeed ~ Ruth 4:11-12

Ruth 4:11-12 "... We are witnesses! May the lord make the woman who is now coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, from whom all the nation of Israel descended! ...And may the lord give you descendants by this young woman who will be like our ancestor Perez, the son of Tamar and Jacob."

A strange toast for sure when one looks at it. Did the Elder really want Ruth to be barren like Rachel, or unloved like Leah was? Then in v12, it gets more bizarre, for did the Elder want Ruth to do a Tamar number and disguise Herself as a prostitute and bear a child by her father-in-law? This is like saying, "I was your marriage was messed up so that you can do the good that only comes through hard times." So why would this toast possibly be thought of as good?

There is a big obstacle to relating to God. There seems to be no higher goal really than feeling better now ~ the Bible calls this "the flesh." But the problem is that a lot of the times "Gods best" looks far different from we want it to. Could it be that the Elders prayer is for brokeness, the power to trust God no matter what? We pray often for God to maker things better, I know I do, and then things often stay the same ... then we take things into our own hands... We want things to improve! Fixed! Like now ...!

Its like the Elder told Boaz, "You married a lovely, beautiful woman, and I want the best. But if the unthinkable happens and Ruth turns out to be conniving as Rachel or insecure as Leah, God will still being at work to bring about the good He intended." This is a very freeing thing to ponder! I know for myself that having ones dreams smashed around a bit may be God's best after all. The broken dreams are actually just pieces in a bigger puzzle to help us get to the bigger dreams, not really dreamed up yet. The desire for feeling good now may be a limit on us to really fly later!

Just some thoughts ... Tim

"us"or "them"

Lately the word "tolerance" has come up rather often and I have a comment or two on it. The word seems to have changed in meaning over the past few years, or so it seems. Real tolerance is respecting the rights of others to hold opinions even when we believe those opinions to be wrong. (Respect being a key word here.) Real tolerance means respecting all viewpoints and is a Christian virtue. It is not silencing all debate but allowing for all opinions. The problem seems to come in when we try to do the job better than the Holy Spirit. Its the Holy Spirits job to convict of sin not ours. Our job is to get the Word out there and to live it. Starting with those closest to us and working outward. God promises His word will not return void...we need to stand on that. Its not our job to argue it, its His to convict.

There seems to be a new view of tolerance defining it as moral neutrality-refusing to judge any behavior as right or wrong. Values are not morally neutral, something that should be obvious really. For example they still occasionally burn widows on the husbands funeral pyre in India, something most of us I'm sure do not consider humane to say the least...

An aside ... but one reason I think that Christians get "intolerant" is because the real action of our faith goes virtually unnoticed it seems by those around us. We want action and we want it right now! It seems that the "enemy" is making big gains all over the place. But I think it is time for us to back off our super power zoom lens and go to the wide angle to get the big picture. The reality is the Kingdom of God is written on our hearts not the headlines in the news. Lets face it, if the Creator of the heavens and the earth is "embarrassed" by what goes on in the news, its because He allows it. He really is in control!

When Christians act according to our faith, the result is a goodness the world at large knows little about. All over the place Christians build schools, orphanages, hospitals, rescue children thrown out to die, helped the poor, visited the prisons, the list goes on and on. We seem to forget that the New Testament was written around the most corrupt and morally loose time in Roman History, yet a small group of people powered by the Spirit, toppled an empire! The power structure was totally against them for sure. The evidence from history is clear. Despite all of our human faults Christianity has made the world and the people in it far better than the world would be without it. With God on our side, who can be against us? When we really really believe this, there really is no need to get so excited by this or that. We just keep on keeping on, one act at a time in His presence. Its not about "us"or "them." Its all about Jesus...

Confusing being religious with discipline?

Some thoughts on a early Friday morning ....

There are a few things in Christianity which a lot of the time I don't really seem to enjoy at times frankly, and its simply the religious process of doing them that keeps me going. There are times I will really feel in the mood to read my bible, I get this massive thirst for knowledge and closeness to God. But to be honest these moments are not close to all the time and if I left my bible reading to just these moments, my bible knowledge would be very poor.

The same with prayer. I think its a struggle and its only the daily thought process of 1. Wake up - 2. Pray, that keeps my prayer life going.

Church is the same. I just don't always wake up wanting to go to church. Once I'm there I love it, and really consider it a blessing to be able to worship with other Christians. But its only the religious thinking in my head that thinks 'Sunday'='Church.' Then I'm out of bed and on my way. If I left church to days when I felt like going I'd be a very poor church goer.

So the question I'm asking is, why is being religious considered bad by so many Christians? Confusing being religious with discipline?

It keeps me going, and keeps me on track with God. Doing something spiritual religiously in my opinion, is no worse than going to work each day because you know you have to keep your life going. My daily, religious feeding of Him is what sustains my life. Sometimes I enjoy it, sometimes I don't - but I'm called to be disciplined in my Christian life.

Maybe I'm just confusing being religious with discipline...

Mr Bland

At Church ....

I've never experience jelly legs, or uncontrolled laughter.

I've never experienced trembling.

I've never experienced the feeling of wanting to be "slain in the spirit."

I've never had the experience of yelling out in an unknown tongue in the middle of service.

In fact more than just not experiencing these things - I've never even desired them either! I don't feel inadequate and definitely don't feel I'm missing out. At the present time I feel close to God and I feel like I'm growing as a Christian and not backsliding. That's not me bragging, I do genuinely feel like that. (2 steps forward, trip on a rock, another step forward ...)

So firstly, what makes me different (and the millions of others who feel the same) from those who do these things? And secondly, if they are gifts from God to make Christian's feel closer to Him, why do I feel close without them?

This post is NOT to blast away at those of us who experience these things for sure. I know many brothers and sisters who experience these things. God uses different means and speaks to us in different ways. There are many streams in our faith. But I do wonder why I seem to get the not so showy BORING gifts? Maybe because they will send me into being hyper showy? LOLLOL I don't know....

Tim

Candles in the Wind

Generally we have a candle burning somewhere in the house. I think it may be just a comfort thing, they are romantic and they look cool. However with Pentecost coming up here is another thought presented by Rev. Benjamin Mayes ...

"We've always said that the candles we light represent the light of Christ, and that is true, but I was thinking that as we consider the tongue of fire on the candle, we should be reminded of the tongues of fire that appeared on the heads of the Apostles and the rest of the disciples on that first Pentecost (Acts 2:1-12). And then as we recall that event, we consider that today the Holy Spirit is present, and at work among us, through the Word and Sacraments, and so that tongue of fire on the candle is a symbol of the presence and work of the Holy Spirit."

I thought that was quite a good thought!

God of Thunder

I shall be going back to 10 hour workdays starting today which makes one a tad grouchy, especially as the week goes on. I was going to write on some positive thing about God, being a Christian or whatever but I'm not in the mood...lol

God is a God of love, as we all know, but there are other attributes as well. God can also get really ticked off! In Numbers 13-14 God was really torqued at the Israelites because of their unbelief and even threatened to destroy them. Then an amazing thing happened as God "changed His mind" after listening to an appeal of mercy from Moses. This is interesting as does God need mortals like Moses to reason with Him and hold Him to His promises? God obviously CAN be hurt by the people He loves.

What I get from this and other parts of the Bible, especially the Psalms and the Prophets, that He wants to engage our minds AND emotions. He wants us to feel fear, alarm at whats around us, the tension of our will against His. He wants us to sense when things are wrong, and wants us to ask and ask again until we find out where that wrong is. Much of God does seems to have the goal of shocking us to our senses. To get to that awareness where we become eventually contrite and humble before Him (repentance) and with others. This is where mercy is found. Grace received does enable grace to be given...

It doesn't seem to be a matter of being nice to a God who could fry you in an instant but being very real with Him. Its not appeasement per say but struggle that gets us to the place of intimacy... (Kinda reminds me of the story of Jacob.) Our God is also the God of Thunder ... and not just this cheesy, wishy washy, always positive wimp type of god...

Just some thoughts ...

The Church as Thermostat

Something I would like to share ...

"There was a time when the church was very powerful. It was during that period when the early Christians rejoiced when they were deemed worthy to suffer for what they believed in. In those days the church was not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; it was a thermostat that transformed the mores of society. Wherever the early Christians entered a town the power structure got disturbed and immediately sought to convict them for being "disturbers of the peace" and "outside agitators". But they went on with the conviction that they were a "colony of heaven," and had to obey God rather than man. They were small in number but big in commitment. They were too God-intoxicated to be "astronomically intimidated." They brought to an end such ancient evils as infanticide and gladiatorial contest.

Things are different now. The contemporary church is often a weak, ineffectual voice with an uncertain sound. It is so often the arch supporter of the status quo. Far from being disturbed by the presence of the church, the power structure of the average community is consoled by the church's silent and often vocal sanction of things as they are."

the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968) in his "Letter from Birmingham Jail"

Phone Booth Confessions

A few years ago there is this movie Phone Booth which pointed out our culture's growing need for confession, even from a secular viewpoint. What's the attraction all about? Is a new "confession-craze" dawning, or do you see something different, something deeper?

There are even online confession sites, eveen Christian ones like mysecret. tv (Warning: Can be "R" rated):

http://www.mysecret.tv/

Of course confessing your secret to an impersonal, anonymous medium is not Christian confession. There is this probably unintended drawback; the site is voyeuristic. Free "real" entertainment that makes a daytime drama look tame! The idea of confession is to share your sin with a trusted confidant, friend, pastor, etc., not with thousands of people on an anonymous message board where the stories of sin can be laid out like a banquet for the voyeurs!

But the idea is there ... Repentance is good for the soul, and we cannot be Christians without it. Many a "Christian" believes that if he simply mutters his confession into his pillow at night, that is good enough. God may very well hear and forgive, however the sinner robs himself of absolution through Christ's body, The Church. James says in his epistle, "Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another that you may be healed." (James. 5:16) "Private" confession to God is nowhere taught in scripture, and this practice is probably responsible for the millions of dollars spent in this country every year on mental health professionals, dealing with "guilt feelings," instead of dealing with the actual guilt through the sacrament. It is important to understand, that if we have trouble confessing our sins to a priest, a fellow sinner, how can we confess our sins to the righteous and Holy God?

Just some thoughts on a Tuesday.

An Irony in the Tapestry of Recession

Last week, on my trip to Coquille, Oregon, I was checking out the TV and a local TV affiliate is broadcasting a commercial for a ministry, one that has a reputation for "deliverance" -- showing scene after scene of unemployment lines, people frustrated over desks of household paperwork, crying people, people holding their head in their hands in total angst. The pitchman exhorts viewers that "There's no problem God can't handle!" and urges us to come to this church and get all our problems solved. Sending in a "seed tithe" would be a major step in the right direction ....Several minutes later I'm watching CSI and on comes the latest commercial of a notoriously ambulance-chasing plaintiffs' law firm. More talk and imagery related to "these tough economic times," more angst, and the suggestion that if life isn't treating us right it may be because we haven't sued someone who deserves it: "Call the offices of ________!"Ironic.

Of course there isn't a problem God can't handle. But perhaps our comfort isn't His #1 concern! From where we stand, we see the underside of the tapestry...and it is a work in progress. The Master Weaver, sees the final pattern, the master plan, and the "right" side of the tapestry as it is woven. What may seem to be a giant flub or cosmic knot to us may truly be an ingenious and lovely design from the view of our Creator.

There have been so many times in my life when I have been creating something, and in the midst of the project wondered, "did I do that right? Doesn't seem to fit there very well, or suit the final project very well." Only to discover that the piece I had cut or the seam I had sewn worked out simply as the ONLY POSSIBLE WAY to achieve the desired end results. Now if I just "sued someone" or passed on the blame elsewhere, the work of art would have never been completed! Our prayer should stem from our hearts ... not our wallet!

Some thoughts on a Saturday ...