Christmas Favorites

First, and foremost, the birth of Jesus Christ!

Second, Christmas music: for all the memories, sentiment, meaning and heart stirring lyrics and melodies. A few that top my list:
"For Unto Us a Child Is Born"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlV9NrN67ps&feature=related
"Christmas Time is Here"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPG3zSgm_Qo

...and way too many more to even begin listing.

And finally, one of my Christmas favorites is Christmas caroling. Especially seeing youth, children and even other adults care enough about others to go spend some time proclaiming the Good News of Jesus birth through something as simple as a Christmas carol.

"God bless us, everyone!"

Favorites...

I've discovered that blogging must not be a favorite, since I seldom do it.

I've decided there are sufficient opportunities to complain, whine, bemoan, criticize, etc.

I've decided to use this blog to only encourage and list favorites in life. I hope you will enjoy.

Above all my favorite is the grace of God, a loving Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and the presence of His Holy Spirit.

Without a doubt my favorites are followers of Christ, my wife, family (immediate and extended), and friends.

On the lighter side, here's a favorite for this afternoon: a cup of hot tea (Bigelow's Decaffeinated Constant Comment to be exact).

By the way... smile!

Rejoice!

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7 ESV

My, oh my, how we struggle in this world when we take our eyes off the Lord. Worry, anxiety, grief, suffering and a mind filled with questions overwhelm us when we do not trust in the Lord Jesus and His Word. Though I do not fully understand all that goes on, I trust in Him ultimately. Though my finite mind is even puzzled by His Word at times I am assured of His infinite wisdom. We truly can REJOICE in the Lord!

Let your "reasonableness" - "gentle spirit" - "moderation" (different translations) be made known to everyone. When our focus is not on the Lord, we tend to exhibit the extremes rather than the "gentle spirit" -- anxiety is such an unnecessary burden. The Lord is "at hand" -- He is not a distant, far-away being, but a relational, ever-present help. Be so thankful that our God hears the requests of His children. His peace is the only thing that can provide such understanding that goes beyond anything in this world.

Don't worry... rejoice!

Good Samaritan and more...

It's a classical music kind of day...

not for any other particular reason than I found this CD when rearranging some stuff.

Classical music always makes me feel more cultured. 

(and more often reminds me of how uncultured I really am)

Those guys in the classical music portraits always look so serious - maybe because they're having to stand still so long for the portrait artist. I suppose that classical music reinforces the concept that music is a language of the heart. Even music that does not include lyrics can influence your emotions and psyche. I can't even pronounce most of the names of these composers much less spell them correctly. None-the-less the notes, rhythm, etc. bring about a response of the heart.

Do you recognize what these are?

Do you realize that when you do a PowerPoint or Keynote "slide show" that these are the predecessors of those slide shows? Wow, what a reminder of how far technology has come in the past few decades! But in this digital age, I wonder how many images will actually survive like the slides and photographic prints of years gone by. For that matter, how much of what we do is of any lasting value through the coming years? Are we doing anything that is of eternal good?

Read Luke 10:30-36:

Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, 'Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.' Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?"

 

Be a good neighbor to everyone you encounter. Go out of your way to encounter those who need your help. Be reminded that Jesus came to this earth to do good and to die for sinners exceeding any other by rising from the grave in victory over sin and death. 
 
The answer to the question: "Which of these... proved to be a neighbor...?"

 

He said, "The one who showed him mercy."
And Jesus said to him, "You go, and do likewise." 

Luke 10:37 ESV 

On Target?

I admit that I am not an archery expert, enthusiast, or even remotely good at it. I did have the opportunity to do some target shooting with a bow, though. I wasn't too bad until I got more than 10 or 15 feet from the target. I bring this up, not to brag on my own ability, but to highlight my own insufficiency.

We are reminded in Scripture that "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23) To sin is to "miss the mark" as I often did shooting at the target, and as we all do in multiple ways each day. For some it is like taking a shot in the dark or without any consideration for where the target is even located. Other times we know where the mark is, but because of our own limitations and frailties we fall short of the target. To truly make it right, we confess we can't do it on our own and that we are in need of the righteousness from God. The "law" only points out our failings (just as the target reveals how often and far off we are from the mark). As a remedy we turn to the One who provides redemption, that is Christ Jesus. We truly are only justified by God's gift of grace through Jesus!

Yoked

Matthew 11:28-30 reads: "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

I admit that I have not had any real world experience with actual yokes other than seeing pictures and occasionally seeing them in a museum, old barn or maybe Cracker Barrell (by the way, a friend recently told me he heard Cracker Barrell was like eating at a garage sale - funny, but true). Anyway, apparently the yoke links the animals together for the purpose of sharing the load and creating not only a team, but sort of a teaching opportunity when one animal is more experienced or stronger than the other. 


Some places in life where we don't want to be yoked is "under sin" -- "unequally to an unbeliever" -- or even "under the law" (as in legalistic religion). Here's what we should note pertaining to yokes:

Come to Jesus... when we are burdened, when we are need of rest we come to the One who is drawing us near and able to bring relief. Jesus alone gives true easing of the labors and fatigue of sin, legalism and strife. 

Take His yoke... it is easy and light. We often complicate faith because we tend to trust in things (even some "good" things) other than Jesus (the only true good) the source of faith. When we walk in His way we need not second guess our steps. The weight is lifted for He is strong enough to bear any load.


We learn from Him... He is the ultimate servant/leader, gentle and lowly in heart. Such a compassionate One as none other who will guide and teach us all the way. Let us submit to Him alone and throw off the encumbrances of this world.


Our souls find rest in Christ.


Not really sure how this fits with this little blog here, but I really wanted to pass along this quote and hope that it helps us work when, where and for what really matters... From David Platt's book, Radical Together: "Let's show in the church a gospel that saves us from work and saves us to work."

Let's just chew on that fer a spell and live it out.

Forever in Christ!

Which Way Do We Go?

Which way do we go?

I heard a comment made this morning during a "news" interview regarding the trouble our country is in currently. The response led one to understand that the primary cause of our trouble was our lack of confidence as a nation. The respondent said, sure the deficit would bankrupt the economy and surely the high unemployment was a tragedy, but what we needed was more confidence because we still live in the greatest nation on earth. 

While I have no doubt that the United States of America is an amazing nation with tremendous wealth and resources, I do not believe that we can overcome realities with false confidence. I do believe that personally it all comes down to what, or who, we place our confidence in. We have placed our confidence in an economy that has now led to astronomical debt (maybe the debt ceiling is the new space program - lol). We have placed our confidence in jobs that are disappearing like a magician's assistant (I never could figure out how they did those tricks). We are placing our confidence in education for the sake of education without being productive (sometimes I wonder if we have more people employed talking about the unemployed than we actually have gainfully employed). We place our confidence in new candidates for political office or other leadership positions only to be disappointed over and over again (will we ever learn?).

I'm currently in the book of Ezekiel in the Bible where God has the prophet telling of great nations that were once so "high and mighty" that would be coming to ruin because of their disobedience to the Lord. I'm not saying our future as a nation is or is not God's judgment, but I do believe we as people cannot simply place our confidence in the things, or people of this world regardless of God. After all, this world, and this nation are temporal; God is eternal. How foolish and short sighted we are when we place our confidence in anything less than God Almighty. 

The Bible also speaks of not laying up treasures here on earth, but in heaven instead. It is a shame that we spend so much of the wealth and resources of this world on things that have no eternal value. Rather, we should invest in the things of God and eternal lives of people. Next time we make a purchase or investment, let's consider the long term results rather than the short term satisfaction.

May God give us wisdom and confidence in Him alone. Love God above all and love your neighbor as yourself.

John 6:1-13

Some points to consider from the account of Jesus' miraculous feeding of the 5000...

I have not seen the movie, "Pay It Forward" but have often heard the phrase and seen examples. I've even watched some excerpts and trailers on YouTube.
Pay It Forward Scene
The concept of doing something for three people that they could not do for themselves and then encouraging them in turn to do for three other people and so on and so on is quite intriguing. Of course, like a pyramid marketing plan, it depends on each person doing their part to keep the multiplication process going. Similar plans have been promoted for church/disciple multiplication and even for serving others in ministry settings. The great thing about the spiritual realm though is that the power and results are not in our hands, but in God's. Our part is the obedience aspect. 

Similar to the disciples responsibility in the account from John, though they did not understand or even conceive the possibility of feeding so many, they were simply called upon to be obedient. Jesus provided the power and results. The disciples merely obeyed the Teacher, and witnessed the miracle. Not to mention, gathered up the "left-overs."

Here are some points for us to take away:

1. Don't focus or worry about our limited ability. We need to recognize that the Lord of the universe has all power to accomplish His will.

2. We need to be willing to surrender what we call "ours" to His service. Just as the boy gave up his lunch we should consider what God has put in our hands to "give up."

3. We need to trust God to use it to His glory. No need to be concerned with getting the recognition for ourselves, just recognize God.

Here's a quote from Vineyard Community Church in Cincinnati: "Small things done with great love will change the world."

Final notes:

As we go through this day I pray we will be faithful and obedient. Let's see what God will do.

Here's a good song to end with: "Go"
"Go" Hillsong United

Thanks to Lifeway and the KNOWN curriculum -- check it out at www.lifeway.com/known

simply 2

Here's the link to that aforementioned interview and quote:

http://mikeslaughter.com/blog/?tx_wecdiscussion[single]=4521

simply

Heard this quote in an interview between Mike Slaughter and Alan Hirsch:
"Living simply so other people can simply live."  - awesome attitude!
simply.

Word

The Word of God is sufficient.

Movement

Movements of the people of God...
"Every believer is a church planter, every church is a church planting church."

http://missionalchurchnetwork.com/alan-hirsch-on-cultural-distance-the-american-missionary-problem/

sacrifice?

How often do we as Christians confuse inconvenience with sacrifice?
How often do we attribute ordinary, everyday "suffering" to persecution?
Is it to the point that we never really sacrifice anything for true faithfulness to Christ?
www.persecution.com

Redemption

http://redemptionvegas.blogspot.com/

SMILE

With dismal weather and storms around the world, rest assured and trust in God. Also, comfort one another with this assurance.

Here's a quote for the day:

Today, give a stranger one of your smiles.  It might be the only sunshine he sees all day.  ~Quoted in P.S. I Love You, compiled by H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

Word

One of the greatest things we can do in life is read God's Word.

Please find a translation that is faithful to the text and at a level you will read and comprehend.

http://www.apbrown2.net/web/TranslationComparisonChart.htm

Even if you don't own a Bible you can read it online.

http://www.youversion.com/

http://www.biblegateway.com/

Then when you read the Word, "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." James 1:22 NIV

nuff said

Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
      And lean not on your own understanding;
      In all your ways acknowledge Him,
      And He shall direct your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6

God is Great!

Just reflect on the greatness of God.
God's greatness is documented throughout the Bible and the testimony of His followers.
Songs resound:
"How Great Thou Art" -- "How Great is Our God" -- "Our God is Greater" -- on and on...
In everything we do, may we see the world through the lenses of God's vision!
Let's not be consumed with only the here and now, but may every moment have an eternal reflection.

whiter than snow

It's snowing! There's such beauty and freshness in the new-fallen snow. It reminds me of the song "Whiter Than Snow."
"Lord Jesus I long to be whiter than snow!"
That is only possible through His cleansing and renewal. Just as the fresh snow fall covers the imperfections of the dead winter landscape, His "washing" brings righteousness to our lives. It is truly a miracle! May we be forever grateful and live a life of obedience.
"I wanna live my life for you, Lord. Lord, for you I wanna live my life.
and I wanna praise the name of Jesus and pray above all things You're glorified." Third Day

Your Love O Lord

Song: Your Love O Lord... reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness stretches to the sky...
I really like the group Third Day and this song. Looking forward to it being sung in worship this Sunday at church.

I remember several years ago somewhat humorous instances which oddly remind me of God's love. Once at a Centrifuge camp in the adult Bible study time we were divided into small groups and our task was to take the song "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" and relate it to God's love. It turned out to be a silly trans-obliteration of the song loosely based on the scripture text from Romans 8:39: "nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Another instance called to attention that I tend to overuse similes when I speak/teach. One of the students was sharing in a small group time at camp and went into a tirade of "It's like God's love..." and "God's love is like..." - you can complete in the ellipses with any number of illustrations whether logical or not. I love student ministry! Funny, how the strangest things can remind us of God's love. It is amazing and His faithfulness is everlasting.

Another song: Great Is Thy Faithfulness... O God, my Father. There is no shadow of turning with Thee. Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not. As Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be.

Job 19:25: For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.

God is faithful

Doing some reading in the book of Job these days on a quest to read through the Bible in chronological order this year. Job had some REALLY bad days! Helps us keep our whining in perspective. Also, getting ready for sharing tonight about the apostle Paul in his letter to Timothy - He says in 2 Tim. 4:16, "At my first defense no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me. ^May it not be charged against them!" Needless to say, Paul was having a REALLY bad day, too!

This song came to mind, here are the lyrics to the chorus:
"Cause you had a bad day
You're taking one down
You sing a sad song just to turn it around
You say you don't know
You tell me don't lie
You work at a smile and you go for a ride
You had a bad day
You've seen what you like
And how does it feel for one more time
You had a bad day"

Even though Job, Paul, even we have "bad days" -- we know the rest of the story. God is still faithful!

Paul says, "The Lord stood by me and strengthened me..."

Another song: 

"Have faith in God when your pathway is lonely. 

He sees and knows all the way you have trod; 

never alone are the least of His children. 

Have faith in God. Have faith in God"

paths

"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Paths are throughout our lives. I recall many times following a path through densely wooded areas - on my Grandfather's 40 acres, on hiking trails through the mountains or around lakes, on hunting trips, etc. A well traveled path provides ease, security, direction. When off the path we are prone to wander if we are not sure of our destination. Does God give us a destination, but not always the easy path to trod? And if we follow God's direction even when it leads off the well trodden path will we take the extra effort to leave a trail for others to follow?

I am reminded today of God's faithfulness. In 2 Timothy 4:18 the apostle Paul writes: "The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen"

A song that comes to mind: "I've wandered far away from God, now I'm coming home. The paths of sin, too long I've trod, Lord, I'm coming home. Coming home, coming home, nevermore to roam. Open wide thine arms of love, Lord, I'm coming home." A scripture reference that accompanies this song is from Luke 15:18 when the prodigal son returns home to his father. What an awesome picture of God's grace and mercy.

Discipline

"Behold, blessed is the one whom God reproves; therefore despise not the discipline of the Almighty." Job 5:16 ESV


How difficult it is to be reproved/corrected/disciplined. It is even difficult to discipline or correct others in a way that is loving and just. How wonderful God is, how great His mercy and love.


Song on my mind: "There Will Be a Day" by Jeremy Camp

Clear Blue

Skies are clear blue and NOW is a great time to make a plan for reading God's Word through the next year. Whether reading to coincide with your group Bible study, chronological reading or otherwise.
Here's a good resource on the web: http://www.youversion.com/reading-plans/chronological/1
Song in my head "Chestnuts roasting on an open fire..." OK - it's really gas logs, no chestnuts, just Christmas song hangover.
Thankful for a gift from a friend and that Linus (from Peanuts) reminds us of "what Christmas is all about."
Praying that many, many students will utilize Bible drill as a tool to know God's Word in Twenty Eleven.
Hoping that we all find ways to love, encourage and lead others to grow in Christ rather than be hurtful and just waiting to be hurt.
Random thought: funny how just a few music notes bring a tune to mind - theme from "The Odd Couple" in my head now.
Time to un-blog and live life.