Scheduling an appointment...

Ever wish you could make an appointment with the Lord God and have a nice sit down, face to face, two-way conversation?  I don't know about you, but I find myself needing guidance on a daily basis.  I so desire to make the 'right' choice, to do the 'right' thing, to say the 'right' thing, and I know, at times, that the only possible way I can be sure I am doing what is best, is if I could speak with God and have him direct me.  Yes, I pray.  Yes, I listen.  Yes, I read the Word.  Sometimes, though, I need more.  I need to be able to sit down and say "hey dad, I've got a dilemma.  What would you do in this situation?"  Then I need to hear His clear and precise response. 

Forgiveness...

I just finished watching the movie 'Into The Wild'.  It left an impression.  One thing really caught my ear.  To paraphrase, if you don't forgive, you can't love.  I thought how true.  They kind of cancel each other out, don't they?  You can't really love someone that you are holding something against.  In not forgiving, you reap the results.  Jesus said that if you didn't forgive men their trespasses, God would not forgive yours.  Now I think I get it.  After all, God is love, and he who lives in love lives in God and God in him.  If you aren't living in love, you might say that you are reaping the whole God not forgiving you in a way, because you are not able to walk in His presence in that state.  This comment by Jesus could well have been about the present, not necessarily judgement day.  There may be something huge here.  The keys to the kingdom.  What you bind on earth you bind in heaven.  What you loose on earth, will be loosed in heaven.

Everything that happens, happens for a reason...

When I first heard this comment, I thought of it in a positive light. In other words, everything that happens, happens according to God’s wisdom, will, and purposes. But then I thought of all the bad things that happen, and I know that statement can’t be a truism. What possible good reason could there be for rape, incest, murder, child abuse, etc? No, everything that happens does not happen for an underlying good reason or cause. Everything that happens does happen for a reason, it’s just not necessarily for a ‘good’ reason.  My Christian Interpretation would be that much of what happens, happens because of sin.

I do believe, though, that good can be a result of an evil or painful encounter in life (for those who believe), but evil cannot come from good. God is not the author of sin.

The wisdom of God...

Just a couple of examples of the wisdom and love of God. God says that we should not seek revenge. He says to leave that to Him (Romans 12:19…Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord). Someone might think that God loves to take revenge. My Christian interpretation would be that I don’t think so. God knows what revenge and vindictiveness feels like and what it does to a person and He wants to protect us from it. He knows that it is poison and asks you to hand it over to him…to rid yourselves of it...to cast your burdens on Him. In like manner, in the Old Testament God forbid the Israelites to eat fat (Leviticus 7:23…Say to the Israelites: ‘Do not eat any of the fat of cattle, sheep or goats’). The fat belonged to God. Why? Was it because God coveted the fat for Himself? Did God so love the fat of animals that He didn’t want to share it with us? Today we know that the fat of animals is not healthy. Once again, God was trying to protect us. This is the theme throughout the Word of God. Is not every commandment of God really an attempt by God to help us, to protect us, to bless us?

Trials and Tribulations...

Life is not discriminatory. If you live it, at some point, you will be challenged by it. God doesn’t play favorites. It would appear that part of the reason for living is the challenges. Most likely, a huge part of the reason for living is the challenges. It’s as if God is asking if we will remain faithful in all and any circumstances.  For some, when life is going along without a hitch, that is a challenge.  A challenge to their faithfulness.  Will they stay focused on God when things are going so well, or will they find their focus is on other things.  For others, it's when life is difficult that they may find themselves at odds with God and turning away from Him.  It doesn't always work that way, though.  As the bible teaches, God would actually draw the Israelites to Himself through hardship. They would turn back to God when things got tough.  

Capitalism 101...

It seems to me that at the very core of capitalism is greed, selfishness, and vanity (1 Tim 6:10). If you can build a better mousetrap, you can make more money. If you can make more money, you can buy more things, potentially live more comfortably, and attain a perceived higher status. If you make enough money, you can go back to being lazy (early retirement), or have someone else run the company while you play.

On the plus side, capitalism creates incentive, incentive breeds competition, and competition breeds innovation. Capitalism motivated by a base nature of greed, selfishness, and vanity, is the counter weight to another base nature component of selfishness...laziness.

So here is the crux of the matter. Capitalism is inherently shortsighted. It’s about making as much money as you can as fast as you can. It’s about you, it’s about now. That makes for lousy planning for the future and future generations.

Have you ever witnessed an incandescent light bulb glass break while it was turned on? The now exposed element burns very bright for a couple of seconds before burning up and going out. That is my analogy of capitalism. Societies built on capitalism can indeed burn brightly for a moment in time, but then they will fall.

It's an interesting thing...

It’s an interesting thing…this thing called vanity. We can see the one that dresses up, albeit, with long hair or a beard or a mustache or a tattoo or body piercings or green hair or name brand clothing or expensive shoes or belt buckles or ball caps or jewelry, etc. Their costumes say ‘look at me’…I’m special…I’m cool…I don’t give a damn…I do give a damn….I’m a rebel…I’m successful, etc. This outer adornment may seem prideful on the surface, but sometimes this adornment of the outer is but a cry for self worth and approval. This one that dresses up may well be lacking in pride.

And then there is the one that may misjudge those that are decorated as being prideful. And though they that judge may not be dressing up, they too are caught in vanities snare.

Was Jesus GOD?

  Here is what scripture says:   1Co 8:6 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord...