In the heat of the desert ...

Here's an interesting test for you all to take ... if one is so inclined of course!

The Desert Test

"In the deadly heat of the desert you will need to make sacrifices to stay alive. How you react may give you some insight into your personality and priorities. Have fun!"

My results are below.Tim

http://www.verysimple.com/personality/index.pl?vsCOM=DETAIL&vsID=7

Congratulations! The two of you made it out of the desert!

Based on Japanese Archetypes the desert represents a hardship. Each of the animals represents an aspect of your life. The order in which you sacrifice the animals might be said to represent the importance of these things to you. The one that you sacrificed first is the least important, and the one that you kept is the most important.

1 You sacrificed the Sheep. The Sheep represents friendship.

2 You sacrificed the Lion. The Lion represents pride.

3 You sacrificed the Monkey. The Monkey represents your children.

4 You sacrificed the Cow. The Cow represents basic needs.

5 You kept the Horse. The Horse represents your passion.

Happy Unbirthday!

I don't know whose birthday it is today .... Maybe we all are having our unbirthdays today ... But attending my granddaughters birthday bash at McDonalds a couple weeks ago brings this to mind ...

Birthdays are to be celebrated! They need to be celebrated! Its more important to celebrate birthdays than a persons promotion, or any other personal victory. Because to celebrate a persons birthday is to say to someone, "Thank you for being you!" Celebrating a birthday is exulting a life and being glad for it! On a birthday we do not say, "Thanks for what you did ... or said ... or accomplished." No, we say: "Thank you for being you!!!. Thank you for being born and for being among us!"

On birthdays we celebrate the present. We do not whine or complain about what happened or even speculate about what will happen in the future ... But we lift someone up and let everyone say: "We love you!"

unbreakable

An interesting quote I came across ...

“To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket- safe, dark, motionless, airless--it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable.”- C.S. Lewis

Mephibosheth

Here's a name for you ... Mephibosheth. Don't even expect me to be able to pronounce it! LOL

Anyway ... his story is another one of those shadows of the nature of God that really becomes clear later on in the New Testament. His story is in 2 Samuel 9, which I put at the bottom of this. His named was changed from Meribaal (The Lord is my advocate) to Mephibosheth after his feet were crippled.(Mephi means my brokenness and bosheth means shame.) In brief, David (a shadow of Christ in the Old testament) took Mephi in from exile and welcomed him into his presence.

Mephibosheths story really is like our own. He didn't tell him to get it together before he would consider it, David took him in as is! As David put it in verse 9, this is the love of the lord. The word "kindness" in this verse means "covenant love" in the Hebrew ... the love God has for us! God is eternal therefore His love goes on forever. (A Tim paraphrase of St. Augustine.)

Most of us have struggled with our fallen/sin nature that we nearly give up at times. Some of us may be so broken that our personalities resist change. Some of us come to Him after a rather desperate culmination of a whole bunch of failures. Some of us are so handicapped that complete healing has to wait for heavens cure. God discerns the possibilities in the most damaged of lives, take all that is unworthy in it and gradually turn it into good. Some of us get to glorify God for our time through our brokenness. But is a covenant love ... Mephibosheth always had a place at the kings table (v13) ... and the tablecloth covered his crippled feet.

Just wanted to share the story...Tim

2 Samuel 9

An Open Table for Mephibosheth

1 One day David asked, "Is there anyone left of Saul's family? If so, I'd like to show him some kindness in honor of Jonathan."

2 It happened that a servant from Saul's household named Ziba was there. They called him into David's presence. The king asked him, "Are you Ziba?" "Yes sir," he replied.

3 The king asked, "Is there anyone left from the family of Saul to whom I can show some godly kindness?" Ziba told the king, "Yes, there is Jonathan's son, lame in both feet."

4 "Where is he?"
"He's living at the home of Makir son of Ammiel in Lo Debar."

5 King David didn't lose a minute. He sent and got him from the home of Makir son of Ammiel in Lo Debar.

6 When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan (who was the son of Saul), came before David, he bowed deeply, abasing himself, honoring David.
David spoke his name: "Mephibosheth."
"Yes sir?"

7 "Don't be frightened," said David. "I'd like to do something special for you in memory of your father Jonathan. To begin with, I'm returning to you all the properties of your grandfather Saul. Furthermore, from now on you'll take all your meals at my table."

8 Shuffling and stammering, not looking him in the eye, Mephibosheth said, "Who am I that you pay attention to a stray dog like me?"

9-10 David then called in Ziba, Saul's right-hand man, and told him, "Everything that belonged to Saul and his family, I've handed over to your master's grandson. You and your sons and your servants will work his land and bring in the produce, provisions for your master's grandson. Mephibosheth himself, your master's grandson, from now on will take all his meals at my table." Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

11-12 "All that my master the king has ordered his servant," answered Ziba, "your servant will surely do."
And Mephibosheth ate at David's table, just like one of the royal family. Mephibosheth also had a small son named Mica. All who were part of Ziba's household were now the servants of Mephibosheth.

13 Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, taking all his meals at the king's table. He was lame in both feet.

~The Message

all things work together ... A Story

The story is kinda old but a good lil read ...

The story is told of a king in Africa who had a close friend with whom he grew up. The friend had a habit of looking at every situation thatever occurred in his life (positive or negative) and remarking, "This is good!"

One day the king and his friend were out on a hunting expedition. The friend would load and prepare the guns for the king. The friend had apparently done something wrong in preparing one of the guns, for after taking the gun from his friend, the king fired it and his thumb was blown off.

Examining the situation the friend remarked as usual, "This is good!"

To which the king replied, "No, this is NOT good!" and proceeded to send his friend to jail.

About a year later, the king was hunting in an area that he should have known to stay clear of. Cannibals captured him and took them to their village. They tied his hands, stacked some wood, set up a stake and bound him to the stake. As they came near to set fire to the wood, they noticed that the king was missing a thumb. Being superstitious, they never ate anyone that was less than whole. So untying the king, they sent him on his way. As he returned home, he was reminded of the event that had taken his thumb and felt remorse for his treatment of his friend. He went immediately to the jail to speak with his friend. "You were right," he said, "it was good that my thumb was blown off. And he proceeded to tell the friend all that had just happened. "And so I am very sorry for sending you to jail for so long. It was bad of me to do this."

"No" his friend replied, "This is good!"

"What do you mean, "This is good?" How could it be good that I sent myfriend to jail for a year?"

"If I had NOT been in jail, I would have been with you when you we recaptured." ~Author Unknown

Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose.

Elisha's Bones

Another interesting little passage I've come across in recent days ...

2 Kings 13:20-21

"And Elisha died, and they buried him. And the bands of the Moabites invaded the land at the coming in of the year.

And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band [of men]; and they cast the man into the sepulcher of Elisha: and when the man was let down, and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood up on his feet."

Apparently they were burying the body of their dead friend and a bunch of bandits appeared. So they tossed the body in Elisha's grave and took off. But then ... the body the body touched Elisha's bones, sprang to life, and one must assume fled from the bandits with his friends! Could you imagine??? He must have escaped as Rabbi's later on claim that he went on to have a large number of children.

What a story! A dead prophet of God has more resurrection power than a live prophet of someone else.This metaphor is in the New Testament as well.

Luke 9:24

"For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it."

John 12:24

"Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit."

And Paul in 2 Corinthians 4:11-12

"For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.

So then death worketh in us, but life in you."

The paradox everywhere in the Bible is that death springs from life. So those of us who put up with all sorts of things like humiliation, loss, the critical spirit of those around us, no credit for what we do ... Paul calls it "being given over to death." This dying also can bring life to others. Jesus was maligned and misunderstood for sure, but most would say, even nonChristians that he lived the most attractive life ever. Its in our dying that His beauty grows in us, light and salt in the world. Life from death ... Everything to the good ...

Tim, in an obscure passage mood ...

First Christian Church, Eugene, Oregon

The cornerstone of the present church building was laid in 1911 at a original cost $75,000, although it was reduced by $1,000 when the contractor was unable to fix a leak in the dome. It leaked for 81 years and was finally fixed! One of the most impressive features of the church is its stained glass windows which may be found in every part of the original structure including the Sunday School and meeting rooms. The Sanctuary windows depict the story of the Christ in Gothic style, reproducing several famous paintings. I didn't get near the time I wanted but will be checking it out a lot closer on my next visit! This building is a true treasure!