Resolutions again?

I was looking at my entry from December 30, 2010 questioning resolutions (http://1ncisfan.blogspot.com/2010/12/resolutions.html) and decided to take a deeper look at the word

according to dictionary.com the prefix "re" is defined as:
"a prefix, occurring originally in loanwords from Latin, used with the meaning “again” or “again and again” to indicate repetition, or with the meaning “back” or “backward” to indicate withdrawal or backward motion:"...

and then "solution": 

1. the act of solving a problem, question, etc.

3. a particular instance or method of solving; an explanation or answer

 

So if you want to give a answer to what a resolution is, you  can define it as "the act of solving a problem, question, etc....again and again"....The question I have is: How does solving a problem over and over again take care of the problem...the answer; it doesn't! Because if you are having to try to solve a problem over and over again, either one of two things are happening: the "solution" is an incorrect one or you are sabotaging the "solution" from working. Well both are true....in the first case you are relying on your own strength to take care of the problem and if our own effort were able to take care of it, then we wouldn't have the problem in the first place. In the other, God may have given us the answer, but we "sabotage" it by ignoring what God is telling us to do and then thinking we can take care of it.

 

So here's an idea for 2013 (happening in 7 hours as I write this)...one let's find a way to get help for our problems that doesn't have to rely on our own effort to work and second; if God is clearly telling us what to do....let's listen and ACTUALLY DO IT! If we do it, maybe 2013 will the year that you want to have instead of being a broken record.  

Condescendation and Christmas

Whenever you hear the word "condensation", the view point is usually negative. But if you look at one of the meanings in the dictionary (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/condescend?s=t), it gives us the following:
"to put aside one's dignity or superiority voluntarily and assume equality with one regarded as inferior"

There are a couple of thoughts that one can get from that definition in relation to this time of the year-The first is where you see "to put aside one's dignity or superiority voluntarily"...voluntarily coming from "voluntary" which is defined as "acting or done without compulsion or obligation" (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/voluntary?s=t)
Just think about that in relation to Jesus, he came down here to early acting without compulsion (meaning that the Father didn't have to force Him to have to come down to earth) or obligation (I don't Jesus ever said to the Father "You owe me one". He came down to earth because He wanted to, not because He had to. He knew that because of our sin, that there was no other way for us to get to the Father and basically "volunteered" to become the sacrifice for our sin. But think about what that entailed...coming to earth as an embryo in the womb of Mary, being born, living a life with Joseph and Mary, and then a nomadic life which ended on a cross....the closest that I could get to comprehending that was in Rich Mullins' song "Boy like me, man like You" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVqQED51XD8 

Which leads me to the second part of the definition: "assume equality with one regarded as inferior"...just think about that....no matter how smart, rich, good-looking, etc...one may be (male or female), none of us will ever get anywhere near the majesty of God...if you don't believe that, just look outside some evening and look at the stars and think about how vast the sky is and that what we are seeing is just a portion of what is in the universe and that is under the control of one even more vast than that! Unless someone someday finds a way to create a literal universe, we will always be inferior to the Lord, and as our superior, He could have kept Heaven forever out of reach, but yet He showed His love in such a way that He came down to Earth and became "equal" with us. By coming down to earth, He went through all of the things, physical and mental, that we as humans go through. 
And all that to give His life as a sacrifice...so that we could get to Heaven and live all of eternity with the Father...words just don't describe all this...

So as you get together with your family this Christmas, something for thought..."condensation" doesn't have to be a bad thing...and if Jesus came down to Earth to become as one of us...I hope that we who are His children and called to be like Him, that it inspires us to maybe "condescend" to others that we come in contact with..... 
 

last night of Hanukkah

The reading for this last night of Hanukkah is:

Revelation 21:22-27 gives us a description of the New Jerusalem: "And I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God, the Almighty, and the Lamb, are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine upon it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb. And the nations shall walk by its light, and the kings of the earth shall bring their glory into it. And in the daytime (for there shall be no night there) its gates shall never be closed; and they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it; and nothing unclean and no one who practices abomination and lying shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life."

 I am still thinking about yesterday as I look at these verses. We read the description of Heaven and think about those precious lives that were ended WAY too early. We read of what will be in Heaven but also what will NOT be there. There won't be any sin, any pain, any diseases of the body or mind to afflict anyone there. Death will be forever abolished and we will be living forever with a Father that loves us and will keep us from all harm. If there is anything that can bring comfort to our hearts right now, the knowledge that for those of us who are believers in that we will see them again on the other side and they will be the ones welcoming us home should be that. 

I pray that for these families that death is only an interruption, not a goodbye and that the Comforter (the Holy Spirit) will bring strength and comfort to their hearts.

Hanukkah night 7

Matthew 5:14-16: "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do men light a lamp, and put it under the peck-measure, but on the lampstand; and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in Heaven."

This is the verse that is for this night of Hanukkah...and after the events of this morning, I feel that it is an appropriate one.  It is on occasions such as this that we as believers can shine the brightest and bring a testimony of who Jesus is to others. So often when people think of Christians, it is because of our politics and the words that we say. However being a true Christian is being an example of who Jesus is. During a time like this, I believe that Jesus would be bringing words of comfort to the families who have lost a loved one, providing in one way or another to be able to help those affected by this tragedy. 

It is one thing for us to say that we are believers, but as the saying goes, people will not care how much we know until we show how much we care...it is when we care and help in whatever way we can, that we can make Jesus known to them and show how real our faith is. 

Father, we pray for those who have lost a loved one today, and we ask that You may give them strength and comfort. We ask that those who are called by Your name may show themselves strong so that Your name will be lifted up, and Your word has told us that when You are lifted up, You will draw all men unto you. Lord we ask that this which has been meant for evil will be turned into good by You and become a testimony of strength and true rebuilding which is based on You, In Jesus name, Amen.

Hanukkah Night 6

There are two readings for this day:

Psalm 119:105 and Psalm 119:130 say: "Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path. The unfolding of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple."

When looking up "simple" in the dictionary, there were 24 definitions and references that were given, but the one that I think would be best was #13...."unlearned, ignorant"....and under "unlearned" this was a definition: "uneducated; untaught; unschooled; ignorant" 

For many of us, this would be a very accurate description of how we are today in reference to the way the world is, our own faith, the Word....etc... My friend Chad Elliott referred me to an article that talks about one part of this tragedy: "How Sunday School Created a Theologically Illiterate Society" http://www.ministrymatters.com/all/article/entry/3429/how-sunday-school-created-a-theologically-illiterate-society?utm_campaign=12-12-12+eNews&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_content=Sunday+School#.UMlUx8Ql3qs.facebook

The only way that we can get out of this trap is to get back into the Word of God. And not just a shallow knowledge of the Word, but a deep understanding of what the Word means, how it should be applied, why it is so important in our lives. In Matthew 4, we read of how Jesus was tempted, but of main importance is how Jesus refuted the temptations that were presented to Him. It was through the Word that Jesus answered the temptations that were put before Him. And if He used the Word to be able to answer the devil, and we are called to follow His example, then should we not then learn the Word and be ready for whatever happens? 

Paul in his second letter to Timothy gave the importance of the Word:

16All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Maybe if we took time to REALLY understand the Word and not abandon it (as many of us have), we wouldn't have as many problems as we have and get ourselves and this country back to God and His standards.

Hanukkah Night 5

The reading for tonight is Luke 2:30-32:

"My eyes have seen Your salvation, which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light of revelation to the gentiles and the glory of Your people Israel."

Just think of Simeon, being told by God that he would not die until he saw the Savior. Who knows how long Simeon was there, day after day, year after year...I wonder if there was a time where he doubted whether what God told him would come to pass.  Or was his faith constant throughout that whole time? But yet in the end, his faith was rewarded when he heard the cries of Jesus in the temple that day. I wonder if he was weeping for joy as he said this statement...

But what about us? Has God given us a word of  a promise that has not yet come to pass? Maybe our faith is flagging, doubting whether or not He will fulfill His word...especially in this "instant" age (instant coffee, instant meals, etc). Maybe we can all learn something from Simeon and understand the verse that Peter writes in his second letter: 8But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. (2 Peter 3:8). Maybe we have to learn that God doesn't see time as we do and that if He is patient enough with us to keep waiting on us to come to His Son or for us to learn something, then we who are His children and supposed to be like Him, should do the same thing with the Father and learn that He keeps his promises. He did with Simeon and if He is the same yesterday, today and forever, then he will with us as well.

Hanukkah Night 4

John 8:12 is the reading for this evenings candle:

"Yeshua (Jesus) spoke to them, saying, 'I am the light of the world; he who follow Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life.'"

I remember when my parents and I went to Virginia to attend my sister's graduation from culinary school and to bring her back to San Antonio. The second evening, we took some of the state roads to get there and to say it was dark would be an understatement...not only dark, but then it started raining, so it became doubly tough and dangerous for us to get there. I don't think I was as happy on that trip as when we got to US Interstate 95, wonderfully bright and lit, and to be able to travel in safety. 

It is the same thing with us before and after we come to know the Lord. Before we come to know Him, we are in a darkness of the mind, heart and soul. And many of us try different things to get out of darkness...education, drink, drugs, etc....yet we still end up with that darkness because they don't address the real problem, how to get to God. It's so funny, when you talk to these people and they say they are "enlightened", but yet when the first thing that comes that they can't explain, drink or drug away, their emotions and fears get the best of them and their lives become a tragedy. 

But then we come to know the Lord, and so often we hear the testimony of people and they say how their lives were transformed and changed. One of the ones that I remember is the late Chuck Colson, a man that had the reputation of being a political "hatchet man", but yet in the backwash of the Watergate crisis, he came to know the Lord and his life was changed from "hatchet man" to a man with a heart for God, starting the ministry of Prison Fellowship and being a lecturer and speaker about who God is and what He can do in a person's life. 

 And just think of what we can do as people of the light, bringing people from darkness to light, all we have to do is to be brave enough to share the wonderful Gospel of Jesus and show them how they can travel from darkness to light, so that they can go a wonderful and bright journey.