Hope IS...

“This I recall to mind, therefore I have Hope:”
There is Hope and then there is hope. Hope is like faith; only as worthy as the object hoped for, the Object which is believed in.
Here’s an example which I Hope makes sense:
My Hope is that God has accepted me, given me a new life in Christ.
My Faith is exactly the same.
But
If your Hope is that I am wrong about Jesus Christ,
If your faith, your entire life, is based on the belief that Christians are wrong
(The born again Christians who keep mentioning Sin and the need for Salvation,
NOT the ones with a beer tent at the church picnic.)
If your faith is based on the belief that Christians are wrong, then we are at a Hope impasse.
The Object of my Hope, my Faith, is Jesus Christ.

Here are a few unworthy hopes:
“I hope I have enough money to get drunk tonight.”
“I hope to marry a rich man (or woman) who will take me away from this misery.”
“I hope, truly Hope, that I am good enough to make it into Heaven when I die.”
You’re not. Neither am I. But my faith isn’t based on my goodness, but on Christ’s Goodness, His love
For even such a sinner as I am.
“It is of the Lord’s Mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not.
They are new every morning.”
I hope for Heaven, but God Blesses me daily until I get there. Heaven is where God is, so I've been experiencing little bits of Heaven for nearly 30 years.
This world is indeed in terrible shape-man in his sin pollutes his environment, as much as he pollutes his life. But the answer, the Hope for the repair and reclamation of the planet is in God’s cleaning it, not man.
In Psalm 51 David begs: “Create in me a clean heart, O God” -we ask for that also, but we can also petition: “Create for me a clean world, O God”.
That is my Hope, and I believe it will happen because God, in His Word, promises to accomplish that very thing.
What is impossible for man is possible for God.
“Great is Thy Faithfulness.”
Amen.

Sent

As this is a day to remember our war Veterans, I’m remembering my cousin Bob.
Bob as a young man served in Viet Nam; newly married, he was one of the fortunate ones who made it home.
Some veterans returned to protests and verbal abuse. Shameful, but it happened. I remember my Grandmother admonishing us kids before Bob arrived not to ask him about the War, as it had been horrible.
We opened our home to Bob; he lived with us for some months as he had gotten a job working for the same company as my Dad. Eventually Bob and his wife bought a home, started their married life, and, as far as I know, are still married and doing well.
We don’t simply remember our Veterans on holidays, such as Veterans Day and Memorial Day. Our Veterans are our family; we respect and honor them for sacrificing their lives, for putting their goals and dreams on hold to answer the call of our Nation when needed. Someday, like Bob, they will return and become civilians again, returning to their goals and dreams, the workaday world…but always to be known by the proud title: Veteran.
You might wonder why I put a picture of an angel at the top of this post. Angels are God's messengers, the ones who are 'sent'. Each one of our servicemen is also sent, into battle, to different countries, far away from home. They are our messengers, sent to achieve our purposes. It is honorable to answer our Country's call. May God Bless You All.

God Opposes the Proud

God opposes the proud, but gives Grace to the humble. If you are a child of God, and you do not humble yourself, God will do it for you.
And I do not mean “humble yourself before God”-we all are humbled before God. I mean humble yourself before man, also.
Pride goes before a fall-does it ever! And please-realize as I write this that I struggle with Pride as much as anyone. So I need the medicine God prescribes for all swelled heads and super-sized egos. And I get a dose more often than you might think.
I got an e-mail today from Creation Science Evangelism, the Kent Hovind ministry. Hovind’s son Eric wrote the e-mail, from which I learned that Kent and his wife have been found guilty of a multitude of tax evasion/related charges, and that he is sentenced to remain in prison until 2015. Her status is unclear.
I believe Kent Hovind is a good man, an intelligent man, my brother in Christ…and guilty on all counts.
I checked his Wikipedia page, cruised by a few gloating websites where his imprisonment was cherished and cheered, and went back to Eric’s e-mail. Uh-oh.
The Wiki has the basic story, and I encourage everyone to check it out. Just Google Kent Hovind and you’ll see the link.
A few years ago I ordered his seminar DVD set, and, while I don’t agree with all of his assertions, I think he is right about some of them. But this post isn’t about Creationism-it’s about humility.
Here’s my Hovind theory. Knowledge can puff up a person, make them feel superior to others, and I think Hovind had quite an inflated view of himself. And a low opinion of others. That was my opinion formed while watching the DVD set, and later seeing him on television. Even Bible knowledge, perhaps especially Bible knowledge can puff a person up.
Yes, we are adopted into God’s family, which makes us very special to Him. But Christ humbled himself as a man, a servant, and calls us to humble ourselves also as we walk through this world. If we look down on our fellow man, they cannot see God, because when they look up, we are in the way.
I am not better than anyone because I am a Christian. But Christ is better than everyone.
Over a year ago Creation Science Evangelism opened a blog, and I wrote to them, not knowing about the tax issues. I wrote that I hoped that Kent Hovind belonged to a strong church, with a board of elders to advise and govern his ministry. Too many Evangelists run into trouble when they have no-one to tell them “No.” Ask either Jimmy, Bakker of Swaggart. I never received an answer, and my post never showed up on their blog, which soon disappeared.
Remember my earlier “Uh-oh”? Eric’s e-mail continues to defend Hovind instead of showing humility.
God is in charge of every facet of our lives. Nothing happens to us which He does not allow or ordain. May God continue to humble me, as often as necessary, to keep me from Pride and the inevitable fall. While I am here, I will obey the authorities God has set, pay my taxes, be a good citizen, try to live at Peace with God and man. Wish me well.

Reality Check, Woodchuck 1, Do You Copy?

Random Thoughts Wednesday

Daylight Savings and Loan time has come back, so Tuesday’s post will appear last Monday. That sentence makes as much sense as anything coming out of Washington these days.

I am working a lot, happy a lot, busy, but with just a few minutes would like to point a few pointers:
iTunes and my iPod make my iWork iPalatable. Music is only one small part of the equation. I listen to quite a few pod casts, from “Renewing Your Mind with R.C. Sproul” to Rush L. to the Woodsongs radio show I mentioned a bit ago to whatever strikes up a conversation with my fancy tomorrow.
I’m listening to old time radio shows-a science fiction anthology: “X minus 1” is pretty good, and just today I downloaded the Jack Benny program. Nearly all the pod casts are free, and it’s all good.

Last night was an election night; I did my civic duty and voted against raising taxes to benefit our school system. As usual, the emotional plea is: “It’s for the CHILDREN!” Hold on, sister.
I’m all for education, and kids learning. But I’m also fiscally conservative. With declining enrollment, fewer kids entering the school system, we don’t need more school bureaucracy , we need less. If we have fewer students, as is the case here, we need fewer teachers and staff, not more. That’s just sensible.
The world of “EDU” needs to meet up with reality. Not just in my little town-schools are ‘flunking’
at a greater rate than the kids are. Which brings to a close this part of the sermon.

Steven Wright: “It bothers me that just one company makes the game “Monopoly”.

Beloved, not Unloved

“1Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; 3and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.”
1 John 4:1-3

Recently I was listening to a radio show where one of the hosts, who had grown up in a Christian home, said that, rather than accepting Christianity, she thought it was enough to be ‘Spiritual”.
“Spiritual” doesn’t cut it. Spiritual without Jesus Christ is Death. Even if you fervently believe in your Spirituality, whatever form it takes. It is profane and unworthy of God.
Of course, this is stating the Gospel in negative terms; and we live in the positive:
Salvation comes through Christ alone, and we have been given His Spirit. When God’s children are told by John to “test the spirits to see whether they are from God” it is with the idea of keeping separate from the world and it’s spirits.
That radio show host said with a laugh, “My family thinks I’m going to Hell!” That’s not funny, friends.
Friends don’t tell friends that its okay to worship at strange altars. If you have been saved through faith in Jesus Christ, indwelt of His Spirit, you are His. You are a Christian. If not…not. Perhaps today is the day you get honest with God.

Trickertreat?

Miscellaneous

I saw a good movie last night - Bella. If you have a chance, be sure to take it in. It is a story about love. It is neither sappy nor sensual, has a wonderful pro-life, pro-adoption message and was the winner of the People's Choice award at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival.

I also recently received this link to a You Tube video. Have kleenex box ready.

As I prepare to make a major life change, almost all of my blogging has temporarily ceased while I try to wrap things up. More later when an abundance of time, a thing I haven't had in many years, overtakes me. God bless you all.

le

It’s Go Go, Not Cry Cry

“And the Whiney and Complaining shall lead them.”
Let’s have a little fun today. Go dig out…c’mon, it’s just for fun! Go dig out the litter of literature, the political propaganda swirling around us all.
If you already have had hammered into you the main ideological differences between Us & Them (Whichever Us you are) look no further than your own critically thinking, unbiased, impartial mind. And you’re beautiful, too.
Look and consider.

Which Party complains about how UNFAIR life is? They see Racism, Classism, Gendersism everywhere.
They propagate to agitate. No Cause is too small, no Anti too trivial. It doesn’t even have to be real.
The Perpetually Upset. The Doug and Debby Downers of the world. The Nay Sayers.

Which Party cheers about how GREAT life is? They see the world as their oyster; one of their most strongly held beliefs is that ANYONE can achieve ANYTHING. Self determination, Personal responsibility, are watchwords. If Life is unfair, fix it. If your life stinks, take a shower. Don’t whine and point fingers at THEM. Be a Nay Slayer.

I wouldn’t take life advice from someone standing on a window ledge.
And I don’t expect to find good fruit on bad trees.

Yes, the world is in turmoil, but that all stems from the World being in rebellion against God. As I am no longer a rebel, but have been adopted into His Family, I’ve run out of things to complain about. Instead of propagating agitation, I Praise and Worship God. Instead of complaining about how unfair Life is, I thank God for my Life. See you in church.

Putting The Haw Haw in Brouhaha

Something monumental is happening right now, and the media is virtually silent. Please bear with me for a moment if I ask you to visit unfamiliar territory. I believe anyone reading this blog is adult enough to handle content which may frighten some. Consider this a warning.
Here’s the short version. A couple of weeks ago Rush Limbaugh was talking to a caller on his show about ‘fake soldiers’ such as Jesse Macbeth, the anti-war faux Green Beret who over a year ago was proven to be a liar. Macbeth received media attention for claiming to have been a Green Beret who had been a party to raping, torturing and murdering Iraqis while in Iraq. It turns out that Macbeth had washed out of ‘boot camp’ so he hadn’t even become a regular soldier, let alone a Green Beret. And he was never in Iraq period-when confronted, Macbeth admitted to having made up the entire story.
Okay, back to two weeks ago. Limbaugh, speaking with a caller, says two words which started this whole thing: “Fake soldier” meaning Macbeth.
It was twisted twice by the Left-first that Limbaugh was impugning the patriotism of any and all soldiers who disagreed with the war effort, then simply that ‘Limbaugh was smearing the troops’.
It got so far along that many in the Senate, led by Democratic Senator Harry Reid, drafted and signed a letter to Limbaugh’s syndicator, Clear Channel, asking it to censure Limbaugh.
That is what led to this post today-the Constitution, which is supposed to protect private citizens from Federal governmental abuses, must have been set aside on the day that 41 democratic Senators drafted and signed that letter to Clear Channel while they were supposed to be conducting our business.
Here’s the Haw Haw. The President of Clear Channel, a friend of Rush Limbaugh, gave him the letter. And he put it up on Ebay, auctioning it off, giving the money to one of his favorite charities, the Marine Corps-Law Enforcement Foundation, which creates college scholarships for the children of military/Federal agents who are killed in the line of duty.
As of Wednesday the bidding was up to $50,000.
Bidding closes and a winner will be declared in a few hours. The bid this morning is $2,100,100.
Limbaugh has promised to match the winning bid, and he has challenged the Senators to do the same.
Even if you can’t stand Limbaugh, I ask that you go to his website today, read the letter yourself, linked on the front page, and think about this whole mess the Senators created by going after a private citizen.
You might also ask yourself why the media doesn’t notice a story like this. Haw Haw!

He Loves You-Yeah, Yeah, Yeah

Sweetness and Light scribe Ann Coulter seems to have ruffled a few more outraged feathers this week.
Here’s the headline from the Hot Air Post:
“Coulter-Jews will be perfected when they become Christians”
My, my my. Hard to find fault with that. But over 500 comments at the Hot Air post show that some did find fault, while others rose up (again) to defend Ann.
Rather than pompostitate there, one little voice in 500, I decided to post about Ann here.
Ann always speaks her mind-it isn’t that she becomes more of a firebrand when she has a new book out to promote-she simply is heard more often as she makes the rounds plugging the book.
I don’t fault her for enjoying the controversy which comes from her stating her beliefs. She’s a bit more vulgar than I would ever be, but in her defense, she operates in a pretty vulgar space; the responses to her start at vulgar and run to inhumane atrocity.
As for: “Jews will be perfected when they become Christians”
Christians on Earth are not yet perfected, but God is working in our lives, conforming us to the image of Christ. Both Ann and myself have a loooooooong way to go yet.
All Christians will be perfected only when they get to Heaven. It may upset your theology cart to believe that Jews who do not accept Christ will go to Hell, but there it is. Jesus said:
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”
Salvation is extended to all, which is only fair, as all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God. The Jew who rejects Christ is the same as a nominal Christian, such as a Catholic or Lutheran, who is not born again.
There are many Jews who are Christian, just as there are many former Lutherans, such as myself, who have been saved by faith in Christ. If I had not been saved, if I had continued in the Lutheran church, which told me falsely that I was bound for Heaven…I would end up in Hell when I died. It’s as simple as that, and that applies to all faiths which reject Christ.
Ann could have stated the truth in a less controversial manner, but then she wouldn’t be Ann, would she?

And It Was Thirty Years Ago Today

When we all got together to play. Oct 10 1977 is the day I raised my hand and swore an oath, flew to California and entered ‘boot camp’. On that day I became a member of the Coast Guard and, good and bad, sunny and dark, it’s still a part of my life.
I wasn’t yet a Christian, although I had friends praying for me, asking God to save me. He took the path of most resistance (mine)-I had to go through quite a bit of Hell to make me long for Heaven. I don’t regret a moment of those days, even the bad times, as they help me keep today in perspective.
30 years. In many ways I still feel like a kid. Up until a few years ago, my motto was: “Stairs are meant to be run up, not walked.” I walk now. Moving to a desk job has made me sedentary, but I’m not ready for the old rocking chair yet.
26 years ago I was finishing up my service time, very eager to get out, move forward. I’ve lived in a few different states, had a few different careers, and I am satisfied that I am exactly where God wants me.
May it be that 30 years from now we will still be Praising God, here or in Heaven. God tells us that the span of a man's life is like the morning mist that burns away, compared to the eternity awaiting us.
I'll see Sandy and Don there, Lori and so many others whom I've been honored to know on my journey so far.
Sandy was one of the ones in charge of the Christian coffeehouse where I first became involved in fellowship. She is a great lady, and I hope to someday have as much compassion for others as was a natural gift for her.
Don and Lori and many others were part of that coffeehouse, and helped me to get grounded in the Word, while still a 'newbie' Christian. Praise God for making us Family, with a reunion ahead like the world has never seen. Amen.

God’s Inhumanity Towards Man

Yes, it’s true. And I love that God was inhumane. Ready the tar and feathers, but before you judge me, hear me out.
Man’s most identifiable characteristic is that of being a sinner, a law breaker.
We were made in God’s image; had Adam not sinned, we would best be defined by bearing His image.
But that isn’t the case; we are selfish, hateful creatures who cause more trouble than we are worth.
And I mean that in the fullest-any man, any sinful law-breaking human being would have pulled the plug on Humanity a long time ago. Given us up as a lost cause, an unfixable, broken Creation.
But.
But God is in charge, not Man. And He knew before man sinned what the course of History would be.
Man hates; as a sinner, that is his birthright, to hate.
But God so loved the world that He did what was humanly impossible: bring a perfect sacrifice which could destroy Sin and hate and death. Jesus was that Sacrifice.
Do you love? Do you love your fellow man, have compassion for the poor and weak? Wonderful!
You get that from God, not Man. You are indeed made in His image; no matter how marred, you still share some attributes of the nature of God.
Remember “To err is human, to forgive divine”? It’s true.
We are errors, but He is perfect. If God were to treat us as Humans do, this world would have been a cosmic chunk of charcoal shortly after Adam fell. Praise God for His inhumanity.

Soon

Dr. Jeffery Seif, on an episode of Zola Levitt Presents - "Bad Moon Rising: “When Darkness Once Prevailed” quoted this from the 9th Psalm:

7 But the LORD abides forever;
He has established His throne for judgment,
8 And He will judge the world in righteousness;
He will execute judgment for the peoples with equity.
9 The LORD also will be a stronghold for the oppressed,
A stronghold in times of trouble;
10 And those who know Your name will put their trust in You,
For You, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.


17 The wicked will return to Sheol,
Even all the nations who forget God.
18 For the needy will not always be forgotten,
Nor the hope of the afflicted perish forever.
19 Arise, O LORD, do not let man prevail;
Let the nations be judged before You.
20 Put them in fear, O LORD;
Let the nations know that they are but men.
Selah.
Psalm 9:7-10, 17-20

When God says yes, and man says no, believe God.
When God says no, and man says yes, believe God.
Selah.

Visitors Welcome

Yesterday when I was heading off to work, I noticed that we had a few visitors.

They had no fear-they came up and milled around my feet as they continued their inspection tour.

Usually, the visitors we have are of the four-hooved/white tail variety. I'm guessing that these are Turkey Buzzards, due to their hairstyle.