Religion

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Hit the jump for more...

Tuesday, March 16, 2010 Reading for the Day John 11-12; James 1-3 Focus on John 11:43

“Then Jesus shouted, ‘Lazarus, come out!’”  Many times when I read accounts of Jesus’ life and ministry in the gospels I think, “I wish I could have been there,” but never more so than when I read the account of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead.  The account contains so many interesting details, nuances and proclamations.  In all of it, though, the most compelling verse for me is John 11:43.  Can you picture being there?  Can you picture standing near the entrance to the tomb, when Jesus has told the people to roll the stone covering the entrance aside?  Lazarus’ sisters sought to stop Jesus, because they were afraid Lazarus’ body would have stunk by that time.  Jesus wouldn’t be stopped.  He shouted, “Lazarus, come out!”  I picture a dramatic pause, and then the mummy-like figure of Lazarus appearing at the door in his grave clothes.  Did the crowd shout?  Did they stand in silent awe?  I once heard someone say the reason Jesus said, “Lazarus, come out!” is if He had simply said, “Come out!” every person in the tomb would have appeared at the door!  No doubt they would!  Jesus is the author of life, and He holds command even over death.  Had I been there in that moment, I don’t know what I would have done, but I would surely have believed Jesus was amazing—probably the Son of God.  The only ones who stood by unimpressed, or at least unmoved by the incident, were the religious leaders.  Far from celebrating Lazarus’ resurrection, they now realized that Jesus’ place among the people had become that of a leader, if not their Messiah.  They started plotting Jesus’ death.  It makes no sense on the surface.  Why would anyone kill a man who had the power over life and death?  The only reasonable answer to that question is – fear.  They feared the Romans would intervene if Jesus proclaimed Himself king.  They feared a loss of control if Jesus were proclaimed a religious leader among the Jews.  They feared the possibility of even considering that Jesus was who He claimed to be.  Fear is a powerful motivator.  In our lives fear will eliminate Jesus from taking central place in our lives, or Jesus will take the central place in our lives and overcome our fears.  Which will it be?  Jesus offers all who seek Him first a place in His Kingdom and the assurance of lives of meaning and purpose.  May we choose Him over fear, that HE may overcome fear in us!

Heavenly Father, Thank You for sending Jesus to overcome every obstacle in the way of eternal life with You—including death!  Thank You for the account of Jesus raising Lazarus, which shows us that for Jesus there is never a hopeless situation.  Glorify Yourself in our lives today, by filling us with Your Holy Spirit and empower us to live the kind of lives that will draw others to You.  This I pray in the name of Jesus.  Amen.

Project 365: 74 'Paths', originally uploaded by ninelives.1972.

Flight paths. Two of them. I snapped this with my phone last week, when the sun was out from behind the clouds. I am missing the sun right now.

Project 365: 73 'Art', originally uploaded by ninelives.1972.

Bridget's Artwork.

Monday, March 15, 2010 Reading for the Day John 9-10 Focus on John 10:10

Few verses in Scripture say so much as John 10:10:  10The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

Jesus made it clear that the goal of His life is to make our lives ABUNDANT.  In the Greek New Testament we find two words for life:  bios and zoe.  Bios is physical life.  Zoe is the life of God.  Some would call it spiritual life.  When Jesus tells us He comes to give us life, and that we may have it more abundantly, He was talking about zoe.  Jesus cares about our physical lives, but He cares much more about our spiritual lives.  Why?  Because at most we are going to live a century in this, physical life.  Then we will live for eternity in our spiritual lives!  We want to live that eternity with God:  Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  That means in this life we must follow Jesus.  We must make Him first in our lives.  Jesus makes it clear that the goal of His opponent, Satan, or “The thief” as He put it in John 10:10, is to steal, kill and destroy.  Most often Satan disguises his theft, murder, and destruction in pleasant sounding, smelling, tasting, touching or feeling packages.  After all, few of us would go willingly to our own destruction!  The key for us to remember is Jesus ALWAYS leads us to life—abundant life. His way is often hard.  His way is often filled with challenging decisions.  His way will cause us to depend absolutely on His life within us through the Holy Spirit, but all of that is far more fulfilling at the end of the day than following the ways of “The thief.”  As we go about this day, let’s make sure our priority is to seek after the life that is truly life, which comes only through Jesus.  Let’s make sure when the thief comes, and he surely will, that we are ready for him, and are prepared to defend ourselves from his lies, temptation and destruction.  The Good News is we may experience the abundant life of Jesus here and now—we don’t have to wait for heaven to experience it—and we WILL experience it as we live IN Him and in the power of His Holy Spirit!

Heavenly Father, Thank You for all You are, and for the abundant life You give us through Your Son, and our Lord, Jesus!  Fill me with Your Holy Spirit today and everyday that I may live that abundant life moment by moment and offer it to others.  This I pray in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

What can you do to help the cause? If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.

When I was younger, and never too shy for a good political argument, I would often end a dialog by acknowledging that although I don't agree, at least we both vote. It seemed a rather tidy and polite way of ending a laborious and circuitous banter.

Not anymore.

If I don't agree with someone, I'm even more polite than I have ever been!

But now I'll quickly go to alternative dialog "B". That's the one where I get real bitter about the whole process and government. In fact I'm so turned off by the whole establishment, that I want you to be too.

While I still vote, and as early and as often as possible, I make a half decent effort to disenfranchise the opposition.

This is great advice for the nascent Tea Party movement. You can accomplish better results if you identify an intractable nature in conversation, and discourage him or her from voting at all.

But you got to find out early on if you can reach these people with your limited government ideology.

Just trying to help. . . .

Sunday, March 14, 2010 Reading for the Day John 7-8 and Hebrews 11-13 Focus on Hebrews 11

Hebrews 11 is referred to as “The Faith Chapter.”  From the beginning of the chapter when the author defines faith for us, through the body of the chapter where the author presents us with a “Who’s Who” in the “Faith Hall of Fame,” to the conclusion of the chapter when we’re reminded all that “Who’s Who” list of faithful men and women didn’t receive what we have received---The assurance of our faith:  Jesus Christ come to the world, crucified for our sin and risen from the dead. All the amazing men and women of faith in the Old Testament looked forward to the coming of the Messiah, but they never saw the day when He came.  We live 2,000 years AFTER He came.  While all of us would love to have lived in Jesus day, to have walked along side of Jesus when He walked the earth, the reality is we’re way better off than those who lived BEFORE Jesus came.  We’re better off, because we are SURE of what we’ve hoped for.  We are SURE that Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords.  We’re sure that either during our lives or at the end of them we will stand face to face with Jesus and hear His words, “Well done, good and faithful servant.  Enter the joy of your Master’s kingdom.”  I am so glad to live on the “victory side” of the cross and resurrection, to be able to wake up each day with the assurance that my faith is well placed.  Does that mean I never have even the smallest doubt?  Not at all!  I’ve doubted many things about the faith over the years, but every time I start to doubt, I consider again what faith is:  The substance of things hoped for; the evidence or conviction of things not seen.  Faith must leave room for doubt, or it isn’t faith! If it’s 100% no doubt sure, then it doesn’t require faith.  When I start to doubt I simply doubt my doubts and hold onto my faith.  That may sound simple or simplistic, but the reality is I KNOW that my faith in Jesus is well-founded and well-grounded, so when the doubts come, I doubt them and keep trusting in Jesus!

Heavenly Father, Thank You so much for Your faithfulness, and for being worthy of my faith.  I thank You for all those who came before me in the faith, and who have set the stage for my life of faith.  Fill me with Your Holy Spirit that I may be faithful and live in faith.  This I pray in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

Two items of Summer Glau news here Hit the jump for more...

Robert Rodriguez introduces us to a couple of minutes of the new Predators movie. It's not much just yet, but what it shows does look good. Hit the jump for more...

My Bluetooth adapter.
tags: p365.2010

Posted via email from Bryan Hill's Posterous

Saturday, March 13, 2010 Reading for the Day John 5-6 and Hebrews 8-10 Focus on John 6:1-15

Jesus performed many miracles, or as John preferred to call them “signs and wonders” during His life and ministry on earth.  Only one of those miracles is recorded in all four gospels:  the feeding of the five thousand.  Each of the accounts has slightly differing details, as one would expect when reading four different authors’ viewpoints on a particular event.  What I have always loved about John’s account of the feeding of the five thousand is that we’re told the source of the five loaves of bread and two fish that Jesus prayed over and multiplied so that they fed 5,000 people was a “lad” or a “boy.”  I’ve always thought about the impact the event must have had on that boy for the future.  After all, for the rest of his life, the boy would    Have been able to tell anyone who would have listened, “I gave Jesus five loaves of bread and two fish and He turned it into enough food to feed 5,000 men PLUS all the women and children who were with them."  Can’t you see folks rolling their eyes or shouting, “No way!”?  But the boy saw what he saw, and he had participated in a miracle of God.  He provided the “seed” for the great “harvest” made available to the crowd by Jesus.  I once read, “God can do a lot with a little if He has it all.”  The feeding of the 5,000 may be the best example of that adage recorded in the four gospels.  The boy didn’t have much.  In fact, that’s what Andrew said when he brought the boy to Jesus:  “He has five barley loaves and two fish but what is that among so many?”   What, indeed!  May we have the attitude of that lad who gave all he had, little as it was, and saw a miracle as a result!  What miracles are waiting to happen in our lives individually, and as a congregation, until someone steps forward and says, “It isn’t much, but I’ll give it all to You, Jesus!”?  May each of us live out that attitude, because as we do, we can be sure that miracles are on the horizon!

Heavenly Father, Thank You so much for Your faithfulness!  Thank You for taking the little we offer You and multiplying it.  I pray You will take all of me, little as that is, and multiply my effectiveness in offering Your salvation to my family, friends, and all I meet. This I pray in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

Project 365: 71 'Sink & Faucet', originally uploaded by ninelives.1972.

The countertop and plumbing is complete. I'm very satisfied with how it turned out.

Friday, March 12, 2010 Reading for the Day John 3-4 and Hebrews 5-7 Focus on Hebrews 6:1-2

Several years ago my good friend, Pastor John Nuzzo, was talking about the “elementary teachings of our faith.”  I interrupted him and asked, “What ARE the elementary teachings of our faith.” He quickly responded, “Repentance from dead works, faith toward God, baptisms, laying on of hands, resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment.”  I asked, “Where did you get those?”  He said, “Hebrews 6:1-2.”  I tucked that away in my mind and when I went home I looked up Hebrews 6:1-2. Sure enough, there they were:  1Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, 2of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. Hebrews 6:1-2 NKJV  Those six elementary teachings of our faith provide a good handle for us to grab hold of when we want to consider what’s really important to believe and do as Jesus’ followers.  As you look at the six, you may be surprised by a couple of them.  For example baptisms is plural not singular, as one might think at first glance.  The reality is there are TWO baptisms documented in the New Testament:  baptism in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit to demonstrate that we have trusted Jesus as our Savior and Lord, and The baptism of the Holy Spirit, which both John the Baptist and Jesus talked about and which we have examples of throughout the Book of Acts.  The others surprise for me was “the laying on of hands.”  While I believe that we ought to lay hands on babies when we dedicate them, people when we baptize them, and leaders when we ordain or license them, I never thought of it as one of the “big six,” as the author of the Hebrews obviously did.  As you think of the remaining four teachings they do provide the basis of our faith.  Until we repent from sin, we cannot live in faith toward God. Unless we believe in the resurrection of the dead, then there’s no real power in our lives as Jesus’ followers.  Understanding that all of us will stand before the judgment seat of Jesus Christ reminds us that eternal judgment is for ETERNITY, and we will either live that eternity with God in heaven or separated from Him in hell.  Those elementary teachings help us focus on what’s truly important and to live in the power of the Holy Spirit!

Project 365: 70 'Tile', originally uploaded by ninelives.1972.

This is the tile my brother-in-law and I installed today on our countertop in our attic. Tomorrow I will be grouting and finishing the plumbing.

Thursday, March 11, 2010 Reading for the Day John 1-2 and Hebrews 3-4 Focus on John 1:1

Jehovah’s Witnesses focus on John 1:1 as a verse in Scripture that shows Jesus wasn’t THE God, but that Jesus is "a god".  They make this statement based on their reading of the original Greek text of John 1:1.  In English we typically read:  In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.  The Jehovah’s Witnesses “translate” it: In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was a god.  They translate it this way because the word God in the Greek doesn’t have a definite article—a “the” in front of it, as it frequently does in the New Testament.  The problem with their translation is that we find many other places in the New Testament where the word God appears without a definite article and there is absolutely no doubt that those verses refer to the one, true and living God.  We can’t simply pick and choose when the word means God and when it means a god for the sake of our opinions.   The founder of the Jehovah’s Witnesses couldn’t even read Greek, and yet he provided an English “translation” from it.  As followers of Jesus we don’t have to learn Greek in order to understand the Bible, but what we must do as we read God’s word in English is recognize that EVERY English translation is a commentary.  It shows the assumptions and sometimes the theology of the translators.  I like to compare several English translations when I'm reading the Bible, because then I get a fuller understanding of a text.  Since, I can read Greek, I’ll get out the Greek Bible when I have questions and see if the original language sheds any light.  Thankfully, the original language does NOT confirm the Jehovah’s Witnesses assumption that Jesus is merely a god instead of THE God.  As followers of Jesus, who believe that Jesus IS fully God and fully human, it’s important for us to understand the strong case that John chapter one makes for that truth!

Heavenly Father, Thank You for sending Jesus as the Word who became flesh and lived among us! Thank You for revealing Yourself to us in such a clear and helpful way.  Fill me with Your Holy Spirit that I may, also reveal You to others through Your love and grace in me.  This I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Just how exactly does one guy keep fighting his way past an army of bad guys? Hit the jump for more...

Wednesday Weigh In #Lifechange, originally uploaded by ninelives.1972.

186

Okay, obviously beer, fish, and pizza help me loose weight. Seriously, we ate out everymeal this past weekend. But I did pay attention to what I ordered and ate. For example, at Willies (a local pub) I usually would order a large fish sandwich, I ordered a small and still walked out satisfied. At AppleBees I chose the 7 ounce steak instead of the 10, & the steamed veggies instead of the baked potato loaded with butter & sour cream. I also have been working a ton in the attic attempting to finish things up. I'm happy to finally be a loser. Even if it is only a few pounds.

Project 365: 69 'Jif', originally uploaded by ninelives.1972.

Is there any other kind?

That Massa is quite zany, and he's the latest example of the problems with commenting on what you read.

The truth is never easy to ascertain. I'm just looking for a good laugh anymore.

Project 365: 68 'Power', originally uploaded by ninelives.1972.