Are you ready?

Don't try to sneak up on this cat; its ready for anything! Look at the eyes, they seem to say "I am one dangerous character". You can tell a great deal about people from the way they carry themselves as well. Whether its a shopper in Wal-mart who is frantically throwing things into their basket or someone who is leisurely walking by the side of the road, what you do says a lot about you. God's selection of those who were to fight for Gideon is a good example.

Jdg 7:1 Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people who were with him, rose up early, and encamped beside the spring of Harod: and the camp of Midian was on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.
Jdg 7:2 Yahweh said to Gideon, The people who are with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, My own hand has saved me.
Jdg 7:3 Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return and depart from Mount Gilead. There returned of the people twenty-two thousand; and there remained ten thousand.
Jdg 7:4 Yahweh said to Gideon, The people are yet too many; bring them down to the water, and I will try them for you there: and it shall be, that of whom I tell you, This shall go with you, the same shall go with you; and of whoever I tell you, This shall not go with you, the same shall not go.
Jdg 7:5 So he brought down the people to the water: and Yahweh said to Gideon, Everyone who laps of the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set him by himself; likewise everyone who bows down on his knees to drink.
Jdg 7:6 The number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men: but all the rest of the people bowed down on their knees to drink water.
Jdg 7:7 Yahweh said to Gideon, By the three hundred men who lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into your hand; and let all the people go every man to his place.

God chose just a few people out of the multitude so that the credit with their victory over the Midianites would not be a prideful thing. By only three hundred men God worked a great victory; men who were cautious and yet unafraid. Are you ready, God is still looking for people to use? Think about that the next time you have some water.

Let the light shine!

This flag says something to me; not just because of what it stands for, but because of what is behind it; the son of God and not the sun in the sky. Somehow the great thinkers of this land have perverted the original intent of the formation of this country. It was founded to be one nation under God, not one nation APART FROM GOD. The idea was to have religious freedom, not to separate ourselves totally from religion. We need to wake up to the fact that there are those in America who would by legal means slowly take away our religious rights under the guise of separation of church and state. This passage from the book of Ephesians will help illustrate.

Eph 5:1 Be therefore imitators of God, as beloved children.
Eph 5:2 Walk in love, even as Christ also loved you, and gave himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling fragrance.
Eph 5:3 But sexual immorality, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not even be mentioned among you, as becomes saints;
Eph 5:4 nor filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not appropriate; but rather giving of thanks.
Eph 5:5 Know this for sure, that no sexually immoral person, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the Kingdom of Christ and God.
Eph 5:6 Let no one deceive you with empty words. For because of these things, the wrath of God comes on the children of disobedience.
Eph 5:7 Therefore don't be partakers with them.
Eph 5:8 For you were once darkness, but are now light in the Lord. Walk as children of light,
Eph 5:9 for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth,
Eph 5:10 proving what is well pleasing to the Lord.
Eph 5:11 Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather even reprove them.
Eph 5:12 For the things which are done by them in secret, it is a shame even to speak of.
Eph 5:13 But all things, when they are reproved, are revealed by the light, for everything that reveals is light.
Eph 5:14 Therefore he says, "Awake, you who sleep, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."
Eph 5:15 Therefore watch carefully how you walk, not as unwise, but as wise;
Eph 5:16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

We need to commit ourselves to living purely and oppose those who propose removing God from our society. Now is the time to really see the need to have the light of Christ shine through us to our nation; for us to realize the absolute necessity of this before its too late. Now means now, not some vague future date. Be what you are meant to be; a light to the world and hope for those who don't see God at all. This has changed individuals and nations in the past and can do it again. Let the light shine!

Fatherhood

When I downloaded this picture a few months ago, I thought it was funny, but now? With people dying from Swine Flu it has lost its humor! Now I look at this picture and notice something I didn't see before; the adult foot in the sandal at the right in the picture. Notice I didn't say "parent" because this person really wouldn't qualify in my book. I would really be upset if this were my grandchild. Proverbs puts it this way.

Pro 17:21 He who becomes the father of a fool grieves. The father of a fool has no joy.

One thing is very sure; on this "parents' " next birthday I would give them a card with a pig on it and the name of my local doctor; they probably will need both, one for a lesson in parenting and the other to get some medical help. Some people are just slow learners.

You just never know about people

I marvel at the security of the Homeland Security booth! Given the events of the past few years, this man must be a little "off" to even wear this t-shirt. If only all terrorists would wear Id's then this world would be a far better place. This picture does raise the question: How do you tell the "good guys" from the "not so good" ones? Sometimes you have a feeling about people though and here is an example of one who has a most unusual name: Doeg.

1Sa 22:6 Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men who were with him: now Saul was sitting in Gibeah, under the tamarisk tree in Ramah, with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him.
1Sa 22:7 Saul said to his servants who stood about him, Hear now, you Benjamites; will the son of Jesse give everyone of you fields and vineyards, will he make you all captains of thousands and captains of hundreds,
1Sa 22:8 that all of you have conspired against me, and there is none who discloses to me when my son makes a league with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you who is sorry for me, or discloses to me that my son has stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?
1Sa 22:9 Then answered Doeg the Edomite, who stood by the servants of Saul, and said, I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub.
1Sa 22:10 He inquired of Yahweh for him, and gave him food, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine.
1Sa 22:11 Then the king sent to call Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father's house, the priests who were in Nob: and they came all of them to the king.
1Sa 22:12 Saul said, Hear now, you son of Ahitub. He answered, Here I am, my lord.
1Sa 22:13 Saul said to him, Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, in that you have given him bread, and a sword, and have inquired of God for him, that he should rise against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?
1Sa 22:14 Then Ahimelech answered the king, and said, Who among all your servants is so faithful as David, who is the king's son-in-law, and is taken into your council, and is honorable in your house?
1Sa 22:15 Have I today begun to inquire of God for him? be it far from me: don't let the king impute anything to his servant, nor to all the house of my father; for your servant knows nothing of all this, less or more.
1Sa 22:16 The king said, You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you, and all your father's house.
1Sa 22:17 The king said to the guard who stood about him, Turn, and kill the priests of Yahweh; because their hand also is with David, and because they knew that he fled, and didn't disclose it to me. But the servants of the king wouldn't put forth their hand to fall on the priests of Yahweh. 1Sa 22:18 The king said to Doeg, Turn and attack the priests! Doeg the Edomite turned, and he attacked the priests, and he killed on that day eighty-five people who wore a linen ephod.
1Sa 22:19 Nob, the city of the priests, struck he with the edge of the sword, both men and women, children and nursing babies, and cattle and donkeys and sheep, with the edge of the sword.
1Sa 22:20 One of the sons of Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped, and fled after David.
1Sa 22:21 Abiathar told David that Saul had slain Yahweh's priests.
1Sa 22:22 David said to Abiathar, I knew on that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul: I have occasioned the death of all the persons of your father's house.
1Sa 22:23 Stay with me, don't be afraid; for he who seeks my life seeks your life: for with me you shall be in safeguard.
World English Bible

Doeg informed the Saul about David; OK, that's not so bad. What is bad though is that he kills the priests of Yahweh even though they proclaim their innocence and the conduct of those around Saul seems to side with the priests. You just never know about people, some just have no conscience at all like this Doeg. David did however and protected Ahimelech. Maybe he should have followed his instinct and done something about Doeg, but even good people make mistakes. Besides, Doeg wasn't wearing his terrorist T-Shirt.

The night seems like day

I have never seen this street before; I have no idea where it is, but I have seen light just like this. When the moon is full on my way home from work sometimes I open the moon roof to see the full light it gives. Then, I look out the windows of the car at the countryside and sometimes it looks just like a sort of daytime, yet with an off white cast to it. The day can have the same effect too, for I remember working in my Father-in-Law's hay fields and thinking how much brighter the day was than normal. Isaiah says something like this in chapter 30.
Isa 30:18 Therefore Yahweh will wait, that he may be gracious to you; and therefore he will be exalted, that he may have mercy on you, for Yahweh is a God of justice. Blessed are all those who wait for him.
Isa 30:19 For the people will dwell in Zion at Jerusalem. You will weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the voice of your cry. When he hears you, he will answer you.
Isa 30:20 Though the Lord may give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your teachers won't be hidden anymore, but your eyes will see your teachers;
Isa 30:21 and when you turn to the right hand, and when you turn to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way. Walk in it."
Isa 30:22 You shall defile the overlaying of your engraved images of silver, and the plating of your molten images of gold. You shall cast them away as an unclean thing. You shall tell it, "Go away!"
Isa 30:23 He will give the rain for your seed, with which you will sow the ground; and bread of the increase of the ground will be rich and plentiful. In that day, your livestock will feed in large pastures.
Isa 30:24 The oxen likewise and the young donkeys that till the ground will eat savory provender, which has been winnowed with the shovel and with the fork.
Isa 30:25 There shall be brooks and streams of water on every lofty mountain and on every high hill in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.
Isa 30:26 Moreover the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven days, in the day that Yahweh binds up the fracture of his people, and heals the wound they were struck with.
Isa 30:27 Behold, the name of Yahweh comes from far away, burning with his anger, and in thick rising smoke. His lips are full of indignation, and his tongue is as a devouring fire.
Isa 30:28 His breath is as an overflowing stream that reaches even to the neck, to sift the nations with the sieve of destruction; and a bridle that leads to ruin will be in the jaws of the peoples.
Isa 30:29 You will have a song, as in the night when a holy feast is kept; and gladness of heart, as when one goes with a flute to come to Yahweh's mountain, to Israel's Rock.
World English Bible

If you ever have been in love, then you KNOW that there are days when everything just looks better, brighter, more wonderful regardless of your circumstances. Those who have turned to God, the ROCK of Israel, know where I am going. Even if the night seems like day or the day is unusual, it really doesn't matter for the light from heaven shines in your heart, making the bad day better and the better day great. I really like when Jesus calls himself the light of the world; it just ties it all together.

Beneath the surface

Remind you of anything? Does the name Titanic ring a bell? A few years ago (maybe more than a few) there was a blockbuster movie by the name of "Titanic". I liked it, but it just had too much sexual content. The one I really liked was the black and white version about thirty years prior. It told the same story, WITHOUT ALL THE SEX. Anyway, the photo was a reminder that it is what you do not know about that may kill you and for the crew and passengers of the Titanic not seeing what was beneath the surface was literally a killer. What Israel did not know was a big problem for them as well and this passage from the book of Hosea gives us a little insight.

Hos 4:1 Hear the word of Yahweh, you children of Israel; for Yahweh has a charge against the inhabitants of the land: "Indeed there is no truth, nor goodness, nor knowledge of God in the land.
Hos 4:2 There is cursing, lying, murder, stealing, and committing adultery; they break boundaries, and bloodshed causes bloodshed.
Hos 4:3 Therefore the land will mourn, and everyone who dwells therein will waste away. all living things in her, even the animals of the field and the birds of the sky; yes, the fish of the sea also die.
Hos 4:4 "Yet let no man bring a charge, neither let any man accuse; For your people are like those who bring charges against a priest.
Hos 4:5 You will stumble in the day, and the prophet will also stumble with you in the night; and I will destroy your mother.
Hos 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you, that you may be no priest to me. Because you have forgotten your God's law, I will also forget your children.

World English Bible

Without the knowledge of God and his will for our lives, degeneration into a society of worthlessness is inevitable. Worthlessness degenerates into lawlessness and then into outright wickedness and from then on there is little hope that society will exist for long. God is necessary and his ways are the way to genuine happiness. But you have to look beneath the surface of things, straight into the human heart and ask yourself... does the warmth of God's love dwell there, or is there an iceberg hiding where people can not see?

HELP ME!

I marvel at this picture. If this is the groom, what is he doing? If this is the best man, what is he doing? It could be someone else, but what is he doing? More importantly, why? Marriage is like following Jesus, you need to put your whole heart into it, or you are just wasting your time. Consider this passage from Matthew.

Mat 6:24 "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You can't serve both God and Mammon.

OK, I am not saying she will be his master, only that a commitment is involved. However, with God its a different situation; you just have to choose and that's that. "HELP ME!" really applies in the case of both the picture and the Christian commitment (discipleship) because both really need help. God will always be there to do just that, but I wonder if the bride will be.

Frustration

LET ME OUT! Could this baby be thinking anything else? Sometimes we are in situations where there is nothing we can do and we become frustrated. Frustration is not restricted to just babies; we all encounter it from time to time. But what about the frustration that just seems to never stop; you know, that one thing we wish would change but never does. Paul knew all about frustration as this passage from 2nd Corinthians illustrates.

2Co 12:7 By reason of the exceeding greatness of the revelations, that I should not be exalted excessively, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me, that I should not be exalted excessively.
2Co 12:8 Concerning this thing, I begged the Lord three times that it might depart from me.
2Co 12:9 He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Most gladly therefore I will rather glory in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest on me.
2Co 12:10 Therefore I take pleasure in weaknesses, in injuries, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then am I strong.

Paul had a "thorn in the flesh" and with good reason: pride. Even though Paul asked for its removal, God said something like "no". How we handle a "no" really defines us as human beings. We can let it eat at us (like the baby in the picture) or accept our situation and "move on through it". Frustration can be channeled into greatness if we rely not on ourselves but on God for guidance. Allowing God to mold us turns prisons into palaces and softens our hearts as nothing else does. Besides, perhaps little Johnny really needed a nap anyway!!

A wing and a prayer

This picture was taken in January of 2009 in New York City. The people lived!!! The pilot was a hero and even "60 minutes" had an episode about the crash and rescue. What would it have been like to go through that experience and come away alive? I remember flying home to New Jersey from Florida right after 9-11-2001; the flight was very, very turbulent, so bad in fact that a stewardess lost her lunch. During the landing the plane bounced so high that one of the wings came within an inch or so from hitting the ground. God allows things to happen for a reason as this verse from 1st Samuel will illustrate.

1Sa 17:37 David said, Yahweh who delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. Saul said to David, Go, and Yahweh shall be with you.

World English Bible

David had seen What Yahweh can do and then had the confidence to face the nine foot tall Goliath. God allowed for danger to come into David's life (and to mine, by the way) to mold him into someone he could use. I know that David thanked God for his deliverance because it is in the book of Psalms and that is exactly what I did the moment we landed safely in Newark. Now, having said that, I wonder what the people on the wings of the plane were doing... ah, you know already!!!!!!

A darker side

New York City is a beautiful place; central park, the shopping, the business opportunities... wonderful. But the city has a darker side as well; crime, corruption, drugs, etc.. Some people are like that as well. God's first king, Saul, is an example. There are many passages in the old testament which show his darker side, but lets just look at one from the book of 1st Samuel.

1Sa 18:6 It happened as they came, when David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tambourines, with joy, and with instruments of music.
1Sa 18:7 The women sang one to another as they played, and said, Saul has slain his thousands, David his ten thousands.
1Sa 18:8 Saul was very angry, and this saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed to David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom?
1Sa 18:9 Saul eyed David from that day and forward.
1Sa 18:10 It happened on the next day, that an evil spirit from God came mightily on Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as he did day by day. Saul had his spear in his hand;
1Sa 18:11 and Saul cast the spear; for he said, I will strike David even to the wall. David avoided out of his presence twice.
1Sa 18:12 Saul was afraid of David, because Yahweh was with him, and was departed from Saul.

World English Bible

Saul was a large man, head and shoulders above all the people and God chose him to be king and annointed him through the prophet Samuel. But Saul was an insecure man, one who lacked the true faith in God to lead Israel successfully. When Saul realized David's greatness and his own failure, he tried to kill David. Not just one time, but many. When we take our attention from God and focus on ourselves and compare ourselves to others, we sin, plain and simple. The fact is that the assembly of God (the church) is made up of all different sorts of people doing a variety of tasks appointed to them by God and each one of us needs to accept this. Don't be like Saul, don't let your "dark side" rule; seek the insight which only God supplies and accept your appointed lot in life and glorify God.