The mornings seem to get busier and busier and the time for writing and reflection diminshes.  This morning was the first morning in a couple weeks that we had temperatures less than 80+ degrees early in the day.  A cool 64 this morning let me sit in my yard and just commune with nature as I read my Bible. 

In Hebrews 9 I was reading about the original rituals for cleansing from sin and how the food and blood and drink were all ceremonial in presentation but gave no relief to the soul of the confessor.  Additionally, the blood was used to cleanse everything as it was the source of life for the animal it came from and thus represented a renewing of life or grace covering the sin.  Again, this practise was in place for many years before Christ ever came into the world without providing relief to the sinner.  So Christ came to once and for all cover the sins of every man should he choose to accept it.  One offering, one time, for one race.  Why did it only have to happen once?  Because it acts as a will so that when the individual (Christ) died, the inheritance is issued out.  That inheritance is eternal life should we choose to accept it.  What a wonderful thought and what a considerate and generous Father in Heaven we have.

He chose Me

We have the question of which came first, the chicken or the egg, which exists in Christianity as far as who chose whom.  Did Christ choose us and thus making it a predestinationn for us to be a child of God or did we choose Him and thus our free choice nature creates history as we go? 
In Galatians 2:20 we see Paul writes that Christ gave himself, thus making it a choice.  He never had to finish what He was sent here to do seeing as He is the Son of God, but He did.  Paul states also that if following the laws (rules) would get us into heaven, then Christ gave Himself for no reason.  "for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly." Galatians 2:20.  He chose us and now the ball is in our court to choose Him.  Why does it matter if we are predestined or not anyway?  Churches have been divided by such things and yet at the end of the day, Christ died for everyone and loves everyone.  It's our choice to allow our hearts to be softened and the miracle of salvation wash over us.
Have a day blessed by God!

Light without a Source

Not to worry, I am not going to rant about each verse through the entire Bible!  However, we pick up in verse 14 of Genesis 1 with the creation of the lights in the sky.  Now, don't forget that light has already been created as well as separation of light and darkness and declared evening and morning or day and night.  So we have light without a source of light which I find interesting.  So now on the fourth day we have the creation of the lights in "expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark the seasons and days and years, and let them be light in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth."  I will preface my next set of statements by saying that I believe in worshipping the one true God and am so grateful for the saving grace and the power in the blood of Jesus Christ and love the guidance of the Holy Spirit in my life.  I find it interesting how so often we can sit back and point fingers at other "groups" who are different from us in their beliefs but here I see it written in black and white that the stars, moon and sun were to mark the seasons, days and years so it is with admiration I look at the native Americans and Chinese and others who have looked at their lives by these governing lights.  I don't agree that they should be worshipped as powers or spirits or what have you but I do see where the focus comes from.  After all, they were created to "govern" the day and the night which would give the allusion of almost a sort of power of their own.  So again we see there was evening and there was morning the fourth day and God saw that it was good!
Quite a handful created on the fourth day!  God almost seems to be increasing in his projects as the days progress.  Here on the fifth day there is a spoken word to create living creatures in the water and in the air.  That's alot of creatures!  Think of the plethra of beings that live in the water alone and even those we have yet to discover and most assuredly the ones we most certainly will never see which allows Gods creation to remain mysterious and unexplainable on some levels just as God Himself is!  vs. 21 "So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems," (note the reference here specifically of living AND moving which would include amoebes, etc) according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind.  And God saw that it was good."

Can you just see God sitting there and speaking the stars, sun and moon into creation and having this great mass of "lights" in front of him and then He just starts picking them up one by one and placing them in their permanent space in space!  First the sun and then the moon and then carefully placing each star.  Is that how it happened or did he grab a handful of stars and just throw them with all his might out into the atmosphere?  It will be fun to find out one day!  The power of God's spoken word is just amazing to me as He can just speak into being the creatures that all live in the water and the air and the plants, lights, land, etc.  Why do we forget how much He loves us?  Yes, we are tested and tried daily but He l oves us just the same.  "Every good and perfect gift is from above."  No matter who the good gift is given to, saved or unsaved, it all comes from God.  Satan is not capable of anything but pain, agony and suffering.  So the next time you have a tough time, ask God to bless you and thank Him for the blessing you have that perhaps you haven't even taken notice of.  Be grateful for the breath you breath for it is a gift.  Allow the Light, which is God's perfect radiance, shine through you for others to see.

How to Eat an Elephant

Do you know how to eat an elephant?  Well, you eat it just one bite at a time!  I know you must have at least smiled at that if not giggled to yourself, but it's true!  I look at reading the Bible just that way.  All my life I have thought I would be able to read through the Bible in a year and have yet to accomplish it.  However, every year, at some point, I begin to read and I always read, at some point, the first chapter of Genesis.  Well, this year I read it and realized some new things!  Hard to believe that I would come up with something new out of "God created this and God created that", huh?  Well, first let me ask you, did you ever really think about the fact that God created light and darkness on one day without having created the sun, moon and stars?  He named them day and night and that was all He did that day. Let's go back one more step.  vs1 " In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.  Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters."  So earth existed at this point with nothing on it but water - and deep water at that!  The Spirit of God was hovering over the waters - for what reason?  Was He waiting for something to rise up out of the waters?  Perhaps he was hovering because it was such utter and complete darkness that He had to hover to try and see!  Of course, it could be that He was hovering because He was pondering what He was going to do first with this heavens and earth stuff He had begun.  I imagine He wasn't all to impressed with everything as of yet because it is not stated that He looked at the heavens and earth and saw that they were good like He did with all the other things he created later on.
After there had been enough hovering, "God said, "Let there be light" and there was light.  GOD SAW THAT IT WAS GOOD, and he separated the light from the darkness.  God called the light "day", and the darkness he called "night". And there was evening and there was morning - the first day." vs. 3-5   That's it.  No big pomp and circumstance or multitude of things created, just "Let there be light" and there was so we now have day and night and that's enough for today!  Kind of funny.  Did he make the sun and moon that day?  No, he saved that for another time. So this was also the creation of "time" in a sense for at this point we still have no idea how long a "day" was in God's time frame, as it could have been anything - hours, days, weeks.  Who knows!
The next day God separated water from water, which is interesting from a scientific perspective in that the water being referred to was in the sky and on the earth.  So perhaps this is where he created gravity, too!  Because land is not created on this day but only the separation of sky from the water body which was earth at this point.  And that was all he did on the second day (envision God stretching now).
The third day arrives with light and now God decides that perhaps the water should somehow be separated in and of itself so He says, ""Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let the dry ground appear." And it was so.  God called the dry ground "land", and the gathered waters he called "seas". And God saw that it was good."  The He got a little more energetic and decided to create some stuff to put on the dry ground, which you will note is dry now even after it had been submersed under water for who knows how long? What did he put on the land?  Seed-bearing plants and trees.  Plants that produced all types of fruits according to their various kinds and then "God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning - the third day."  Are you paying attention to how the day goes, by the way?  It's not morning and evening but rather evening and morning.  So God considered the night for the first part of the day and the day for the second part.  Sort of coinsides with the military clock, huh?
Kind of interesting how many things we have to think about in just the first 13 verses!  Now, I don't pretend to have all the answers and I don't want any of us to dwell on these questions but merely to consider them because  when we get to heaven, those of us who are born again, we will know what the angels know and have answers to the all the things we have wondered about.  And that will be soon enough! So, I'll leave you with that bunch of bites for today and will be back with more later:)

Compassion

I am working with an Adopt-A-Family ministry this Christmas and I am using my developed listening skills to hear what is not being said and filter out what I need to know from the stories that are spilled out.  Imagine being a mother of 6 children under age 10 and two of those children are mentally or physically challenged.  Then add to that, that the father left because he just couldn't take it anymore.  So here you are alone, no family, in the house with 6 kids 24 hours a day.  Unable to have a real job outside the home because you can't afford the special care needed for at least two of your children.  Is this someone who called and poured out a sob story to get help?  No.  Not in the least.  When I called her for a little more specific information as to ages on the children and such, she started sharing just small bits and pieces.  Tough life for her every day. She was glad to have someone to talk to for a few moments!

II Corinthians 1:3-4 says..."Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have recieved from God."

Just amazing.  We are comforted not to make us feel better about our situation, even though that is part of the outcome of being comforted, but rather we are comforted so that we in turn can comfort others....no matter what type of  trouble they are going through.  We are not comforted to comfort those who are only going through what we are going through, but just so that we can comfort in general.  When is the last time you comforted someone.  Have you steppped out of you own "comfort" zone to be a little uncomfortable and support or encourage a fellow human being?  It doesn't even have to be someone you know.  Perhaps they just need you to listen to them or perhaps they need you to stop and look them in the eye and just ask "Are you doing all right?".  How many times have you walked past someone in the store and they have that forelorn look or look so tired and stressed and you just quickly look away?  Sometimes a kind gesture can go a long way in inspiring someone else to encourage people.  I have a friend who will occaisionally pay for her groceries and leave an extra $5 or $10 for the next person in line or pay for the fast food order behind her.  You will never know how far that little gesture goes.  So amidst all the glitter and glamour, listen to the prodding of the Holy Spirit, those of you who are saved, and be a little more comforting in this season that is so hard on so many.  I guarantee your season will be much more joyful!

Proverbs

How many people do you know who love to read or live by Chinese proverbs?  Little quips of wisdom from someone at some point in time that others have adopted as life guides.  Morsels that inspire people to be better people, stronger people, more consistent, steadfast, diligent, etc.  Perhaps you have one or two "proverbs" of your own that you have hanging on a wall, refrigerator or mirror that you look at everday.  I have been reading the book of Proverbs written by King Solomon, who was the wisest man ever to live.  The first 9 chapters are written as an introduction.  He is directing his statements to his son as advice for life.  He states several times "Listen , my son, to your father's instruction." and "store up my commands within you...". 
You can catch the sense of urgency on the part of Solomon that his sons really remember and grasp onto what he has to say.  Perhaps he repeats it because we need to hear things several times before we remember them!  What a gold mine of practical points and poignate vision.  How many things in life have lasted as many generations as the Bible and remained as applicable in their gestation period as they are 3000 years later?  Take the challenge and read just one chapter a day out of Proverbs for the month and see how much you glean from this powerful book?

Complacent or Compassionate?

The book of Matthew is a great book.  Of course, I love the New Testament because it always seems to me to be the best part of the Bible and the most relatable to the events occurring in the modern day.  That is, of course, my opinion.  The Old Testament has wonderful stories and strong foundational truths as well so don't misunderstand me here, as I love the Bible in it's entirety! 

So we have lots of things that happen with Christ where He is healing the sick, the broken and the bruised and leading people to a saving knowledge of Himself.  The Pharisees are following Him and His disciples all around and watching their every move just ready to jump on them for the littlest thing!  They would have to have been otherwise how would they have known that the disciples had eaten some grain from the grain field on the Sabbath?! You  know anyone like that?  Jesus gives the disciples the ability to heal and drive out demons in His name and gives them the Holy Spirit to stay with them after He leaves the earth to return to His heavenly home and is continuously teaching them about compassion and love.  How awesome.

A repetitious act of compassion.  The spirit of a servant and yet the strength of a leader.  

 His example is that of kindness, empathy and compassion.  Is He accepting of the sinful situations He sees leaving them without instruction or reprimand?  No.  He is constructive.  He admonishes with loving words and reaches out to them where they are with compassion. 

Am I compassionate?  I mentally answered this with a "yes, but..." when first asked the question and then immediately realized my mistake.  Does Christ categorize His compassion or does He show compassion for those around Him without reserve?  It is no doubt without reserve.  Some of us have a higher level of sensitivity to our "compassion" button and some of us can be reduced to tears with a simple photograph.  As children of God we should all have some level of compassion in us and if we have squelched the emotion felt with that compassion for fear of being judged for our sensitivity, look again at Christs life starting in Matthew 9.  If the Holy Spirit dwells in you, as a child of God, then you should have compassion because it was part of who Christ was and is and always will be.  So next time you feel that twinge in your soul, think about what gifts you have that you could use to act on your compassion.  Are you an organizer, or a baker, or an artist, or a builder, or a nurse?  Whatever gifts you have whether a teacher, a servant, a leader, etc., how can you help those you are compassionate about?  Make it a matter of prayer.