ANGELS

Jesus Did It!

By: Lennie Fisher

I was driving along the Florida Turnpike from West Palm Beach area to Orlando.  It was a Sunday afternoon so traffic was very light. I was probably about 25 miles south of the Orlando area.

I saw a Ford people carrier van heading south.  Suddenly it ran off the road onto the central grass area.  It was coming toward me very fast; about 90 mph.  I was not in danger as it was still a long way off.  

I think the driver had momentarily fallen asleep and he suddenly realized he was on the grass, so he turned sharply back toward his side of the road.  His van went sideways on the grass, but as soon as it went onto the hard road surface, it started rolling over and over.  As I watched this all happening, I thought perhaps people where being thrown from the van.

In an instant I just cried out to God:  "Please help these people, God!  Help these people now!"

Now with no windows, the van was still rolling over. I know it sounds a little silly, but it almost seemed to be dancing like it was being carried, and the rolls where controlled not by gravity and speed, but by an unknown force.  I had stopped in the center grass area and was calling the 911 operator as the van was still rolling off the road.

As it rolled away into the far side, it went off the road in almost slow motion into a swamp.  Even the glass and dust and debris seemed to be in a slow motion zone.  It landed on its wheels in about 2 feet of water in the swamp.

I ran over and approached from the passenger’s side front.  As there was no glass, I was able to reach across and switch off the ignition to prevent fire. The driver was a man in his late thirties.   His wife was a similar age, and in the rear where two children: a girl about eight years old and a boy about three.  All where seated perfectly in their seats.  The kids in proper child car seats and all where secure.   It was hard to believe after 8 to 10 rollovers.

I was giving instructions calmly and am not sure where I got the words from. “Do not move.  Just sit still and do not turn around or move your head, “I said. "Help is coming."

The man looked really happy and did not move his head.  He made eye contact with me and had a peaceful smile.   His wife showed no emotion and was bleeding from what looked like a serious head wound on the right front of her forehead above her eye.  She did not look at me.  She appeared to be looking at something else. The kids both made eye contact with me but did not speak or move.  The little girl looked at her brother and he was reassured without a word.

The parents did not look around at the kids; neither did they speak. Although they where doing exactly as I had told them, I was a little surprised at the peaceful scene with no crying . . . and just silence.

At this time I could feel something strange.  I could only say it was an unseen force. The force pushed me back.

The van was surrounded by a large hoard of angels.  There was a lot of them and they where much bigger that me.  I am 6’ 4” and they seemed to be about 8’ tall with large wings. They also had a commanding structure.

I am sorry but I did not see them with my eyes, but I could see them in my consciousness.  I could feel their power and realize my weakness. They did not seem to touch the people but they just poured energy from their flapping wings. I could feel the energy and these people where in a state of complete peace, soaking up the energy.  In front of my eyes . . .  the woman with a serious head wound started to change.  Her head stopped bleeding and the wound was healing as I watched.

She still did not look at me.  I was just about 10 feet from her and I knew not to get closer.  I just seemed to know.  As a few minutes passed, it was clear that the angels had done their job and they started to leave.  They did not all leave together.  The people in the car all looked happy, and like they where suspended in some type of happy dream.

I could now hear the sirens screaming as the fire trucks and paramedics arrived. The scene started to become that of a normal accident and I was asked to leave. As I walked away I could see that the debris from the crash was lying on the road and grass. I was helping to pick up things and put them in a pile.  They where like school books, and I looked and could see that there where a lot of Christian books.  It appeared as though this was a missionary family.

I hope this true story somehow encourages you.  It is special to me and although I did not see the angels with my eyes, I saw them with another type of consciousness that I cannot put into words,  but it was,  however, very real.

Christian's Story

Christian's Story, as told by his parents

On Monday August 6, 2012, the glands in Christian's neck were very swollen.  I almost brushed it off as a typical children's virus until we looked at his tonsils.  They were enormous and almost blocking his airway.  I immediately took him to the pediatrician.  After days of negative strep and mono tests, all while his lymph nodes kept getting bigger, they ordered a CBC blood test - just to rule anything out.

Come Wednesday night, I was working late and alone in my office when I got a call from the pediatrician.  He told me that the lab had taken a look at the CBC and Christian's white cells seemed abnormal.  He told me that it looked like our beautiful, four and a half year old son may have Leukemia.  He continued to tell me that Leukemia was treatable and curable, but an oncologist was waiting for us at UMass Children's Medical Center in Worcester and we had to pack our bags and go immediately.

Within 24 hours, we met with one of the pediatric oncologists, Dr.Neil Grossman and the diagnosis was confirmed that Christian had T-Cell ALL, which is a rare form of childhood Leukemia.  Christian would be on chemotherapy treatment for the next three and a half years and have 8 days of low dose cranial radiation.  We agreed to place Christian on a clinical trial for his treatment in hopes that we could honor those children with cancer who came before him and to hopefully help T-cell patients in the future.

During that first week, we met the entire pediatric oncology team, including Dr. Naheed Usmani who would be the doctor that Christian would see for the majority of his treatment.  What made this team so special to us is that not only did they give us hope that Christian could get through this, but they also looked at Christian as though he was their own.

At first, Christian had a hard time adjusting to hospital life.  He became increasingly nervous whenever he needed to have a procedure done.  He endured multiple bone marrow aspirations, lumbar punctures with chemotherapy, IV chemotherapy and multiple extended hospital stays.  Thankfully, his oncologists made sure that Christian was comfortable and that his needs were met first in order to make him less fearful.   For example, Dr. Usmani would let Christian wear her rings during spinals so he felt he had super powers.  She also started the Sidekick Program which matched up 1st year med students with a sick child.  Christian was matched up with Walter Palmer and they instantly hit it off.  Walter would come and visit Christian during every in-patient and clinic stay.  The two would walk the halls of 5-East, IV pole in hand and fly spaceships around.  Christian just loved going to UMass because he knew he would see Walter and many of his other friends there.

The child life program here at UMass is exceptional.  Christian loved getting visits from Child Life Specialist, Francis, who once gave Christian his own doctor's scrubs and jacket which made Christian think that he ruled those halls on 5-East.  Even though he faced port accesses, high dose chemotherapy or radiation - he was just thrilled to be here to play with friends.  Christian started going to clinic in the Benedict Building shortly after starting treatment.  He was given a tour of the clinic by Child Life specialist, Kris, who soon would become one of his favorite people.  All the nurses at clinic were so caring and friendly.  They made coming to clinic easy and taught Christian easier ways to handle getting his port accessed for transfusions.  They helped to answer questions we had and also gave us many hugs and provided hope during some stressful times.

After a year of treatment, we were spending much less time in patient and we knew it was high time to start giving back to the hospital that was caring so well for us. How do you even begin to give back to the hospital who is saving your son's life, we wondered?  My husband, Cesar, began donating blood at UMass on a regular basis. We donated toys to Child Life whenever we could, and we started our own team -- Christian's Courage -- for the UMass Medicine Cancer Walk. We have walked for the past 3 years, with many of our family and friends joining us in support of this amazing hospital.

We feel it is so important to help fund cancer research here at UMass, since it is because of research in the past that our little boy was given over an 80% chance of survival from pediatric cancer.  We have been told that Christian's own T-cells have been used at this very facility in hopes of helping other children in their fight with T-Cell Leukemia.  While experiencing a myriad of emotions throughout Christian's journey, we felt grateful that out of such a scary and life changing situation came the hope that Christian would be able to help other children one day. We always knew he would be brave throughout treatment, but to know that he can help save a child's life through cancer research at UMass simply exceeds anything we could have hoped for.

Christian is now eight years old and nearly 3 and a half years in remission. He finished chemotherapy this past Thanksgiving and had his port removed right before Christmas.  We are so thankful that everyone here at UMass was able to give Christian a chance of having a childhood that I know he will look back on as a great one.

When people don't want you in their lives.

     Sometimes things happen where people choose to not have you in their lives.  You may have done the same thing when you chose to not have so and so in your life.  Perhaps the strain of the needs of the other person got to you.  Maybe they or you outgrew the other and that's just the way life is.  For the Christian the situation is just as prevalent as the non-Christian.  We have just as many reasons and excuses why we don't want to have or be a part of a relationship that is not our cup of tea.  With sin wreaking havoc in our lives there comes a time when ending the relationship with another is contemplated.  I was once asked if I would ever recommend a divorce to a Christian couple.  I said I would.  When there events that put the spouse and children in danger of harm and the other spouse won't get help; it's time to leave.  It's not that God likes divorce as he doesn't.  Rather, he favors keeping people safe from harm.  When we look at these situations there are some problems that cause us to question our faith or the faith of others.  Why would a Christian man/woman think, say and do things that are damaging to another?  Why would they think inflicting harm on another was okay?  Maybe I did something and deserve this? 
     Friendships are a similar category.  I'm talking mostly among believers but the rules apply to non-believers as well.  Relationships take a lot of work, prayer and understanding.  Due to the vulnerability factor men have a more difficult task at hand than do women.  Men have been conditioned so that they think they need to be okay, in control, above the mess of life.  Often this mindset places expectations on other men to be someone they simply are not.  This sets us up for disappointment when they cannot be who we expect them to be or we cannot be who they expect us to be.  Sometimes things just get too tense, too complex, and people need a break from the relationship.  So, they take a break.  Or you take a break.  In the world we live in it's easy to find another person to have in your life.  This makes it easier to leave a relationship behind.  In any case, we have friendships that begin and friendships that end.  When the reason is innocuous like moving away the friendship remains but is put on pause or the dynamics change.  So, what do you and I expect from a Christian friend?  Are those criteria consistent with what the Bible says?  Are you and I able to put ourselves aside and unselfishly enter into and be there for another person's life?
     I don't want people in my life who don't love, accept and approve of me.  They don't have to like what I do for a living, read, watch on TV, or what team I cheer for.  They just need to, as best as they are able, to love, accept and approve of me as a child of God, a person, someone real.  I don't want people in my life who use me and abuse me.  Neither do you.  There are friends in my life who are not Christian and treat me better than some of my Christian friends.  As a male, I have more female friends than male friends.  This too can be problematic.  Where I once didn't care about that mix, I know that it's dangerous to be close friends with someone of the opposite sex when you are in a relationship.  It's no different with our relationship with God.  He doesn't want to be in a relationship with us when we are in a relationship with another god.  It's not that God doesn't want us to be in relationship with him because he does.  He just doesn't and won't put up with our worshipping another god.  If you don't feel the closeness of your relationship with God, guess who moved. 
     It's okay for people to enter and leave relationships where the Bible permits.  It's not okay to do this out of selfish motives.  When someone tells us what we need to know versus what we want to know; we need to listen instead of run.  When it's from God we should want to hear that input.  When our relationships are built on and around the principles and morals God has established, we have no need to leave or be left.  We should want people in our lives and "not forsake the gathering of the believers."  The Christian community shouldn't be fragmented.  Yet, when we serve our selfish needs, that's exactly what happens.  There are so many churches and denominations out there that a person can easily move from one church to another and take care of that "relationship problem."  But, if the relationship problem is yours and God is trying to take care of that problem, running away won't help.  In the end we need to choose to be a friend to God as he wants to be a friend with us.  He won't leave us drowning in a raging river.  What will we do with those who we disagree with?  When we think about it we know that relationships take work, compromise and love.  There will be people you don't want in your life and there will be people who you don't want to be in their lives.  That's just a fact.  What you choose to do with God's direction is another thing.  Yet, it's still your choice.

Last time I checked I wasn't God

     Though I sometimes do act that way, I know that I am not God.  I choose to be the god of my world when I don't let God do the choosing.  Perhaps you do as well.  Since we are all sinners, we are all guilty of playing god in our own lives as well.  It might be something small or something large; but playing god we will.  For instance, I know that God wants me to forgive those who have wronged me.  The word says that if I don't forgive then I won't be forgiven.  Hmmm...  I know that God wants me to care for the orphans and widows (our fellow mankind).  Hmmm...  I know that God wants me to think well of those around me who act like idiots and fools.  Hmmm...  There are the ten commandments and all kinds of exhortation to let God be God in our lives.  Partnered with God being God is the rewards for doing nothing.  What!?  Yes, nothing.  If I do nothing but let God have his way and Christ lives within me, then it's God doing whatever and not me.  All I have to do is nothing.  Well, that's not completely true.  I do need to listen.  I have a hard time listening not only to God but to others as well.  Thus professing myself to be wise I've made myself out to be a fool more than once.  So, why is it that I think I can be god of my world?
     It's ingrained in our thinking.  We are taught one word that steers the whole ship of our lives.  What is that word?  "I"  That's the word that comes before "I AM" The difference is that we are not God and cannot claim to be.  Yet, there have already been so many I's in this blog that it's difficult to get away from the habit.  There is the second problem.  We have an ingrained habit of using "I" along with "will" and neglect the greater "I can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens me."  There is no room for the third part of the equation.  That would be "self".  We have the habit of listening to our selves, choosing what we want, and doing whatever without allowing God to provide a "more excellent way".  Try this; for the rest of today try to not use the "I" in a "habit" when dealing with "self".  It's a lot more difficult than you might think.  In so doing, we will find that when we are taken out of the equation God is then able to speak, be and work through us to effect his mission of bringing salvation to all mankind. 
     Distraction by the world around us is also a culprit in our daily existence.  I seldom watch TV.  I don't particularly care for what is on TV except for soccer.  Well maybe a home improvement or DIY show.  Then of course there are the documentaries and so much more.  Yet, I still limit my viewing because God can use my attention and time in a more beneficial way.  I don't go to sporting events primarily because I cannot afford the tickets, parking and whatever.  If I can't afford tickets then I shouldn't go.  If I can afford tickets am I selfish and not affording something for God?  Depends on your an my state of heart.  God doesn't want us to eliminate all the pleasure of our world.  He wants to be primary in the pleasure of all our world.  That's the reason he has set up the hierarchy as he has.  There is work and there is play.  There is sacrifice and there is indulgence.  There is separation from the world and there is attachment to God.  There is heaven for some and for some there is hell.  It's just a matter of choice.  When we choose to be god there is no room for God.  Last time I checked I wasn't God.  I AM was.

Thermoneuclear war and what it means to Christians.

     While serving in the US Army I took a class in Nuclear and Biological War.  I know that's probably not the most interesting or Christian topic.  But, it's relevant to today.  The class text told me that if someone dropped a 1 mega ton nuclear warhead in the center of the city where you live the following would happen.  For the first 50 miles out in all directions there would be total destruction of everything.  No building, nothing living, no vegetation and even the cockroaches would be destroyed.  Guess that's one way to get rid of them.  In the next 50 mile ring (so 100 miles out from center) there would again be nothing living with exception at the 100 mile fringe where there would be some parasites, maybe the cockroaches and such.  All other living matter would be annihilated.  No people, no animals, no buildings, no vegetation.  Get the picture.  Then at 150 miles out from ground zero there would be some signs of life in all forms (except people) and some signs that all wasn't gone.  THEN that area would be thrust into a "nuclear winter" for the next 10,000 years.  Quite the dismal picture.  Here is the real problem though.  I just talked about a class I took in the 1980's and used a 1 mega ton nuclear warhead.  The smallest nuclear warhead used then was a 500 mega ton nuclear warhead.  Five hundred times the destruction and distance of destruction.  Gather your thoughts now.  It's not a pretty picture but it's true.  Even if you made it to a bomb shelter, you would die there.  The radiation left over would kill you otherwise.
     Since the world has stockpiled enough warheads to destroy the total earth about 100 times over, we can see how crazy this has become.  So much fear and desire for power that we have leaders who are crazy enough to push that button.  As a Christian, what are we to do?  We can protest, write letters, stockpile survival gear and food, and all sorts of things to try and survive.  We can pray for our nation, our leaders, the world and it's leaders and place ourselves at the mercy of God.  We can panic and move to central Montana (they have the bombs there as well).  We can pray.  That's probably the only three words written today that make any sense.  While people go about their daily business the button waits to be pushed.  I can convince you of all of this and you can go online and verify the information presented.  Yet, people don't want to see what the wanton disregard for human life has done to them.  We don't hear of churches, denominations, or other religious groups demonstrating against nuclear war.  We don't see the churches demonstrating against much anymore.  Why is that?  Have we become so desensitized that we don't even care or do we really have our heads in the sand?
     Imagine, if you will, that the President of the United States has just announced that the President of North Korea (or any other country) has just launched a nuclear missile set to land in San Francisco, California.  The President says they are doing everything they can to intercept that missile.  Even if the missile is intercepted and exploded in the atmosphere there will be ramifications felt for 10,000 years.  The radiation would drift around the globe and settle wherever the winds take them.  Keep in mind that there was only one launched while in reality there will be many.  Yet, even with this heightened awareness TODAY the Christian sits on their pews and homes and do nothing to help the perishing.  The existence of hell and it's eternal flames and torment are way worse than thermonuclear war and yet we don't care if people go to hell.  We are told to gather for potlucks and donate money for the ministry.  When will we be told that people who we love are going to hell and be eternally punished because you and I pushed the button rather than talked with them about Jesus.  You and I are more powerful in Christ than any bomb in the world.  It's all about choice.  You can choose what you may.  Just understand that it has the 50, 100 and 150 circle effect.  You choose whether the ripple is good or bad.  It's always our choice.  What will you choose?

Christians shouldn't have to put up with Murphy's Law.

     There are many axioms with Murphy's Law and none of them have a positive context.  That is unless you like misfortune and events that take your eyes off the main focus.  Living your life waiting for the other foot to drop means you are living life on the defensive instead of the offensive.  When playing any game (sometimes life feels like a game) it's always better to be on the offensive leading the game than to be on the defensive trying to figure out the other person's game.  It's no different in the Christian life and world.  We have the choice to play offense or defense.  One is positive and leads to peace and contentment and the other doesn't.  Sounds really simple when I type these words.  I know from personal experience my own choices have lead me to live life on the defensive more than not.  Don't get me wrong, I know there is a game and know when and where to play the game.  I've been both good and bad at playing the game.  So have you.  We all make mistakes, color outside of the lines and even sin (gasp!).  Life is basically made up of choices where we either surrender our life to God and live life on the offensive, or we try to run our lives ourselves and live life on the defensive (even when we think we are living on the offensive).  Doesn't make sense when you consider that we are intelligent human beings capable of so much.  Yet, living life in the past (defensive) is the choice of so many including me.  Living life in the present and future is living life on the offense. 
     Murphy causes us to live life on the defensive.  When our thoughts and actions are consumed and directed by the events and programming of the past, we are incapable of living in the present or the future.  For instance, I planted my garden in the last few weeks.  The anticipation of the plants poking through the soil is only surpassed by them growing when in turn the reward of their doing everything is realized and I can reap the rewards of all that I didn't do.  Okay, I planted the garden, watered, and harvested the crop. Other than that I didn't do anything.  If I lived life by Murphy's Law there would be dread in my world  thinking the worst that could happen.  The catastrophic events that hadn't happen would weigh on my mind day in and day out.  "What if...?" would be the byline in my life.  So consumed with that which hadn't happened and probably wouldn't happen the joy would be sucked out of my life.  That's no different in going to work, being in a relationship or even believing God can't love me because I am such a sinner in need of punishment.  Does anyone hear the toilet being flushed?  Being so consumed or fatalistic leads us to expect the worst instead of the best.  It also causes us to give up and believe the lie that we can't possibly be loved or that God could possibly forgive us of our sins.  We would do well to quell those thoughts but we have been programmed by family, friends, church people, and the world.  So, why do we buy into the lie?
     Because it's easier than exercising faith.  That's pretty simple.  We are okay with all that goes right but when things don't seem to be headed down the high road we relinquish the territory to the low road.  It's similar to when we consider our Christian journey.  The road is narrow for those who are going towards their home in heaven.  The road is wide for those who are on the road to destruction.  Knowing which road you are travelling on can answer that question of whether or not you have Christ in charge or if you are in charge.  Like going to a garage to have your car "noise" fixed; many exchange parts randomly until they find the right one.  All the time they are just eliminating that which didn't work instead of analyzing, defining, and identifying the real cause/problem and then fixing that.  When will we choose to let God REALLY be the author and finisher of our faith?  He's way better than living with Murphy.  Make the right choice.  It's yours to make.

What's with all the aggression in our lives?

     Jesus was going (present tense) to the temple.  He saw (present tense) what the people had done (past tense) and were doing (present tense) to the house of God.  Jesus braided together a whip (present tense) and used it to chase the money changers from the entrance to the temple (present tense).  He tipped over their tables (present tense) and let their animals and birds they were selling (present tense) go free.  Then he told them that they had desecrated the temple (past, present and future tense).  Quite the scenario.  Jesus did and said a lot of things that exemplified the most peaceful person on earth.  Well, he is God.  The anger and aggression he showed on this day was the righteous anger of God towards the aggressors against his kingdom.  Follow me here.  Aggression is that movement against or towards another or an object.  When most people think of aggression what comes to mind is fighting, assaulting, robbing, and other crimes against others.  There is a difference between these acts and the righteous anger of God.  His is okay and ours is not.  Wishing our aggression was okay is just wishful thinking.  Knowing that the righteous anger of God is there to punish those who transgress is fact and not wishful thinking.  His aggression is there against the enemies he has.  Wait, God has enemies?  Yes he does.  Sometimes those enemies include you and I. That's kind of harsh Steve!  Yes, but not as harsh as the accounting you and I will need to go through before the throne of God.  Every thought, word and deed will be reviewed.  That's not to keep us feeling like  Big Brother is watching or waiting to squash us.  God knows the hearts of man and know that we are sinful people in need of a Savior.  With the accounting Jesus, our advocate, will pronounce "forgiven" to every thought, word and deed that is sin. 
     Please understand that I do not condone aggression against anyone.  I'll leave that to all the hockey players out there.  Aggression doesn't just need to be physical.  Aggression is also psychological, emotional and demeaning.  Aggression in the worldly sense is control and dominance over someone else in one way or another.  We all know what we think about "that" driver, those people, the political group we don't belong to and Uncle Marley.  Those thoughts aren't beneficial and yet we participate in them.  In the movie War Games (I'm dating myself) the end of the movie comes with this quote: "The only play to make is to not play at all."  There you have it.  The essence of our peaceful co-existence with our fellow man and with God.  Don't be a game player.  Game playing is an aggressive move to an issue that isn't really essential in our Christian lifestyle.  I'm well acquainted with aggression in a positive sense.  I spent 10 years in the US Army and another 8 years with a police force.  I've also spent many years raising children!  That should qualify me for this topic.  Even my time as a pastor and missionary were marked with positive aggression.  The Gospel is aggressive in it's quest to bring all men, women and children to know Jesus as Savior.  That doesn't mean I punch someone in the nose when they say no to Jesus.  It means I take a secondary approach for that person.  I pray for them.  Prayer as aggression?  Yes, aggressively approaching the throne of God on behalf of another's soul is an aggressive action. 
     Hear me that I don't condone pastors/preachers/denominations who threaten and coerce people with their aggressive and intimidating tactics.  Their demands that you do this or that to be right with God are a sin in themselves.  Jesus does not demand us to do anything.  You can choose heaven (his option) or you can choose hell (the devils option).  You can choose to serve man (your option) or you can choose to serve God (your option).  We can encounter the Gospel by reading the Bible and aggressively studying the Word of God applying these concepts to our lives aggressively in order to reach the lost.  We can aggressively live our Christian life by feeding the poor and caring for the orphan and the widow.  We can aggressively be the man, woman and child God wants us to be because He aggressively sought us while we were yet sinners.  When we are complacent we are aggressively approaching our world from the enemies perspective.  He would rather we be complacent (if we are believers) than to be aggressive with the proclamation of the Gospel of peace and salvation.  We have taken it upon ourselves to use words to skirt the most important aggressive action we will ever take.  We have the choice to accept Jesus or reject Jesus (there is no choice as important as this).  What do you choose today?

"Because I said so!" is not the answer.

     When parents are finally at their wits end that statement comes out of their mouths.  It's usually annoyed or even angry,  The words reach the person but often fall on deaf ears.  Having come to that place myself a few times I know what it feels like to say it as well as having it said to me.  No one goes away from the situation feeling heard or loved.  Whether we encounter the statement in our home with family, in the office with your boss or co-worker, or even with a friend who is trying to be helpful; the feelings are the same.  That's the way the religious authorities functioned both before and after the birth and death of Jesus.  The laws were controlling, consuming and contrived by men and women who were hell bent on having things work their way.  Free will was taken away and replaced with the better judgement of men and women who said so.  Like small children the rest of mankind feared reprisal and went along with the will of the few over the weakness of the many.
     One of the first events in the Bible is the conversation Moses had with God at the burning bush.  As you will recall Moses had quite the history of power, knowledge and then he discovered who he really was.  The Lord met Moses in a burning bush on a mountain side. God told Moses to take off his sandals as he was standing on holy ground.  Moses complied.  God told Moses to go and set his people free.  Moses didn't object.  God told Moses he was to tell the that he had heard their cry.  Moses then asked, "Who shall I tell them has sent me?"  You can almost hear the frustration building as God was probably thinking, "What a stupid question."  Keep in mind that Moses had been schooled in other religions and as an Egyptian was probably worshipping other gods prior to his awakening.  God says, "Tell them I Am sent you."  You see, the problem wasn't that God was in some kind of holy war with other gods.  He had been there through every moment of every day of every year of the peoples life and history.  He had preformed miracles and took extraordinary measure to care for his people.  Yet, Moses asked "Who should I say sent me?" The people would recognize the I Am statement from their history.  It was the basic, "Because I said so." because there were no other gods.  He was, is and will always be the only God.
     For the Christian the problem arises when we use that statement in any context.  That problem being we are extending our being into godhood.  By that statement we assert ourselves as God having the last word.  There are lots of television and radio and pulpit preachers who think they are God.  They are their own god but they are not God.  Demanding allegiance by your giving and the amount of what you give is only one manner in which this takes place.  One pastor has taken to having people on the air become members where they can then use the airwaves to assert "Because I said so." as the gospel according to them.  The devils tools are manipulation, control and secrecy.  He used that phrase (kinda) in the garden with Eve.  He uses that same phrase today to seduce the populace. When we in turn take the "Because I said so." gospel to the people (or your pastor might) we then are fighting on the wrong side.  It's not okay to choose to serve any other God. 
     When we say "Because I said so." we use our anger to manipulate, control and practice secrecy.  When God says, "Because I AM said so." he is lovingly pleading with us to follow Him, choose Him, and tell others about Him.  His love is so great for us that he gives us a choice.  What do you choose today.  "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Joshua 24:15

There is a light at the end of the tunnel!

     And no, it's not a gorilla with a flashlight!  Sometimes one would think that to be the case.  Life throws stuff at us that lead us to believe that the light at the end of the tunnel is either non existent or so far away that we despair of ever getting there.  So, why do we chase the light at the end of the tunnel anyway?  What is it we have been convinced of that leads us on the endless journey to get to the light?  As a Christian, I have always believed that the light at the end of the tunnel is the entrance to heaven.  That's true as far as my personal knowledge and experience.  But what about the tunnel itself?  The Bible says that narrow is the way that leads to life and broad the way that leads to destruction.  Maybe the tunnel is a good metaphor for the Christian journey?  Perhaps we need to keep our focus on the light as we move through life here on earth.  Jesus is the light of the world.  He is not the light the devil gives that is deceptive and leads one to believe we an do life without Jesus.  He came into the world to enlighten and to shed light on the world.  Another perspective is that it's only in the light one can be examined.  Living in the darkness helps us to hide ourselves from each other but not from God.  There have been many books written about life and death experiences.  I have yet to read one where a life hasn't been changed profoundly.  That's my story as well.  Having had a life after death experience, I know the light is real, the light leads to heaven and the light will be waiting for each and every believer.
     But what about the tunnel?  The tunnel is dark and visibility is confined to what is very close to you and nothing beyond that.  Unless, of course, you have some light to show the way.  Flashlights are good and help but don't illuminate the whole tunnel.  Torches and even beacons fall into the same category.  The tunnel is dark because of the darkness of sin and evil in this world.  Everyone of us has lived in the darkness of the tunnel since our conception.  That's what the Bible says.  The darkness doesn't go away when we come to know Jesus.  It's still there and surrounds us.  The difference?  We have the light of Jesus to take us on our journey.  Note that the darkness of the world doesn't go away.  There, I believe, is a good reason for this.  If all we have known is the darkness of the tunnel and suddenly have the light; everything is now unfamiliar.  We need the light to take us on the path of righteousness.  Reliance on the light within us is now essential for our continued journey.  The temptation to return to the darkness lurks around every turn of the tunnel.  It's always easier to go the path of least resistance.  The tunnel itself isn't the path of least resistance. The path of least resistance belongs to all those both demons and human who choose to live in the darkness that makes up the space surrounding the tunnel.  We have choices to make in regards to focus.  We are in the tunnel until our earthly death.  So, it's in spiritual dying that we first have the light bestowed upon us for the journey ahead of us.  The physical dying allows those who have Jesus as Lord to enter into the light at the end of the tunnel...heaven. 
     Imagine yourself at night in a dark forest.  Your journey is to enter the forest at point A and then exit at point B some unknown distance away.  You have a flashlight but no batteries.  If you choose physical batteries you have a limited time to make the journey.  If your batteries run out of energy before you reach your journey you are left in total darkness.  However, if you have the light given by Jesus through his salvation and the Holy Spirits presence then we can indeed walk by faith and not by sight!  The journey is as long as it is.  It doesn't matter because spiritually the believer is already there at the end of the journey.  We have become sojourners in the world and are homeless.  It's a good place to be.  While we are dependent upon God for the journey, we are also free from the pull of the darkness to the degree that we have chosen to leave the world in favor of living with and for God.  There is nothing, according to Scripture, that can snuff out the light of God living within us.  We are the light of the world in that sense.  People can see us even if we cannot see them.  It is our light that first attracts that others see and are attracted to.  If we don't live in the light then people cannot see Jesus living through us.  Whatever your belief about the topic of the day, you still have the ultimate choice.  Choose wisely!

Hidden agendas and subtle schemes! Oh my!

     Ever wonder why people end up with who they end up?  Many fall in "love" when it's really more like falling in "lust".  Love may be there but it's not necessarily the primary agenda and motive.  More than one woman or man has been subtle in seducing their mate in order to get the ring on the finger or the body into a bed.  There was a superior court case years ago in Washington state where a citizen took a politician to court for providing false information and promises (he lied).  The citizen lost the battle when the judge declared that there is not expectation on the public for the politician to tell the truth.  Legally sanctifying every politician to lie all the more.  We just passed tax season.  It's a time where we are to give an accounting of our income so that we can pay our proportionate taxes used to support the various government programs.   Many did not tell the truth, told a little of the truth and justified the lack of truth with various rationalizations.  They lied.  Why?  Because they wanted a little bit more back from the taxes they paid all year long.  Church giving is often an area of abuse because cash gifts have no receipt or proof of having been given.  Thus people guesstimate a bit on the upper side.  Yep, lying again.  What are the Christian's hidden agendas and subtle schemes? I've just pointed out three.  You see, when we start talking about hidden agendas it's always about the unbeliever and the other person.  We don't look at what we've done and not done that is our hidden agenda and subtle scheme.  Honesty and righteousness are cast to the side of the road when we involve ourselves in these practices.  Instead of God being served, the devil has his way and the Christian is discredited when they are found out.  We always get found out.
     Often the key words that are addressed are "want" versus "need".  The less I have the more I want and the more I have the more I want.  That's what is happening in reality.  When we enter into that frame of mind, Christians cast aside the primary message of the Gospel.  Jesus died for our need to be saved from hell.  That is the primary message of the Gospel.  Yet, many Christians treat their faith as something they have somehow acquired by another means.  We cannot be good or even great people and enter the kingdom of God unless we have humbly accepted the grace offered through the work of God on our behalf.  The Scripture is clear that we cannot serve two masters.  If we do we will love the one and hate the other.  Two choices.  If we love Jesus as our master our needs, we are told, will be not only met but met before we ask.  If we love the world as our master our needs, we are told, will not be met by God.  The Christian plays with these two concepts to their own peril.  As long at there are hidden agendas and subtle schemes in the Christians life, their salvation is questioned and even doubted.  I don't know about you but over my lifetime as a Christian I've given not only God but many others all the evidence they need to question my Christian faith.  All because of my wants that were not the desire of God.  I served the world and regret that in my past.  Hopefully, I've learned a bit about that and changed.  What about you?  Where are you in your Christian life?  Do you cater to hidden agendas and subtle schemes?
     Here is some ways in which you and I can check out our agendas and schemes.  First, admit that nothing is hidden from God, nor are our thoughts and actions subtle to Him.  We are visible to the invisible God.  He doesn't lord it over us like Big Brother but he is aware.  He knows our comings and goings from before the day he created us in our mother's womb.  He knows what I will think, say and do for eternity.  If that isn't a wake up call for us then what is?  He created us and loves us.  He wants our needs to be met and some of our wants.  If we are honest with Him and ourselves we will see whether we really have love for God and have a debt of gratitude for his dying and resurrecting so that we can be resurrected.  You can do practically anything you want in the world including criminal and philanthropic.  Why would you if it offended someone you love because they first loved you?  Secondly, we need to admit that we have fallen short of the glory of God and sinned against him whenever we sin in any form.  Lie to your boss?  It's a sin against God.  Cheat on your spouse?  It's a sin against God.  When we sin against God, according to Romans 13, we choose the negative consequence of our sin.  Conversely, when we stay away from sin we not only enter into the presence of God who loves us, but we also are blessed "so much that we cannot contain them." 
     I don't know about you but this is a struggle for me at times in my life.  Most often when I'm feeling lonely, angry or am hungry.  Giving these three over to God is difficult.  When I'm successful in doing so all I have left is the peace of God that "passes all understanding."  It's my choice.

Well, imagine my surprise!

     I'm a guy and that should be a warning to other guys out there that I am about to bear some guy secrets.  Well, maybe not secrets.  I'm surprised when I finish putting together the latest thing requiring "some assembly" and there are left over parts.  Imagine my surprise the first time I put together an item and there were parts left over?!  No one told me that when I grew up this would happen on a regular and reoccurring manner.  It should be required teaching in school if our fellow men aren't willing to share this important lesson of life.  I've figured it our though.  After quite a few "spare parts" I've come to the conclusion that it's an evil plot to frustrate us men and to take our eyes off Jesus.  I bet Jesus didn't have any left over parts as a carpenter.  Though he seems to have left over parts to deal with in assembling me to his likeness.  When I moved into this house I purchased a cabinet for my TV.  I had so many left over parts that I was sure I had assembled it wrong.  However, on closer scrutiny, I realized that the parts were "spares". As such, I just added them to my growing collection of coffee cans filled with "spare parts"   Where am I ever going to use them?  I certainly don't know.  I've amassed a lot of spare parts in my life as well.  When I ship off this package to Jesus in prayer I'm sure he wonders where the extra parts come from.  Maybe some inattentive foreign worker getting paid barely anything threw a couple of screws and a bolt or two into the package to really stick it to me!  Well, maybe it's not a conspiracy theory.  Jesus takes my spare parts and uses them to create in me that which can be constructive and able to project himself to my world.
     The hard part is when a family member (going to leave that unnamed) is watching me put together that toy, piece of furniture, or other item.  "Aren't you going to use ______ ?"  I don't know how to explain the conspiracy theory or the excess parts so I say everything will go to good use.  I toss the spare parts in my pocket so they won't be asked about again.  Somewhere down the road that same person will ask if I have anything to fix this or that.  Guess what!  I do!  I pull down my coffee can (number 3) and pull out just what is needed.  "Where did you get all that?" is usually the next question.  I tell them that God supplies all my needs even before I need them.  Because they are all spare parts they don't cost me anything!  Score one for the man!  God doesn't need our spare parts and asks us to leave them at the door.  The spare parts that we carry are contingency plans and God doesn't need spare parts for his plan.  He has all he needs to make us into what he considers a better man.  Our need to keep spare parts is partly because of our lack of faith.  "Well, you never know when you will need this 5/16th nut."  "Well, you never know when you will need this extra supply of oatmeal."  Get the point?  We don't need the contingency plan in our Christian living.  Imagine my surprise when I read that God not only has supplied but is supplying and will continue to supply all of our needs and lots of our wants.  All we need to do is ask in faith believing.
     I have to confess (confession is good for the soul) that there have been times when I have finished a project and found that I am missing something.  It's usually already been put in the coffee can.  So, I do what every good self proclaimed assembly worker will do; I don't go back and do it again.  "Do it again" is short for "do it right".  Who will know?  That's what I tell myself.  Who will know?  We all know that if it's going to become known that the event will happen at that time when my error can have the most impact on the most people.  "I thought you said they were spare parts?"  Yep, I get caught.  Whenever I try to run my life I find myself eventually facing the question from God.  "Why didn't you let me do it, handle it, provide for it, and many other attributes of a very loving and forgiving God.  It's difficult enough admitting we are wrong to other men; but to the opposite sex, our children, in-laws, the neighbor or our pastor?  It's the humbling experience, if we are honest, of admitting our wrong so that the Maker can fix our mistakes.  God has been so good to me.  I've messed up more areas of my life than most people can ever imagine exist.  Yet, because God loves me and you, he allows us to choose.  It is always my choice.

Christians are perfectly imperfect...thank God!

     I sinned yesterday.  And the day before that.  And the day before that.  In fact, I can't make it through a day without sinning in one way or another.  Sure I have my "good" days and my "bad" days.  Doesn't everyone?  So, how much sin is okay in my day or your day?  Well, actually, none is okay.  Matthew 6:33 states "Be perfect as my Father in heaven is perfect."  At least that's what it says in English translations.  What the Greek (ancient Greek) says is "Be being made perfect as my Father in heaven is perfect."  Now that makes more sense because we as fallen sinners (Thanks Adam and Eve) are not capable of being perfect as God is.  Be "being made" perfect is a process of sanctification and not permission to be bad.  Sanctification is a process by which we die more and Christ lives more in our lives.  The more of our life we let go of to Jesus, the more like him we are.  We were created in his image and that image doesn't just disappear.  The sanctification process is the uncovering of the image of God in each of us.  The more we fight the process, the less we see of the image of God in ourselves.  The more we surrender and die to self the more of the image of God we see.  What we should be doing is seeing how much better the image of God is than the image of Steve.  Or yourself. 
     What would happen if the image of you or the image of I would be totally replaced with the image of God?  Well, we would be in heaven then.  So, let's just imagine that we are 99.9 percent living the image of God.  What would that look like.  Maybe that would mean that we only did a "small" sin in a day.  What would it look like if we were perfect except that we thought of being selfish?  That's just one sin.  It's not small but if it was missing from our lives wouldn't that be great!  The kicker is that God cannot inhabit that part of our lives that is still seeking to sin.  He has given us free will to either be god or to let Him be God.  There are no other choices.  I read through the "Free" ads in Craigslist instead of doing my blog this morning.  Was that a sin?  I was being selfish to address my wants before God's wants.  But was it a sin?  That's where we have this "thinking" problem.  We think.  When we have the spirit of God indwelling in us, encouraging us in the way to go, and prompting us to choose God over god, we have our needs met and some of our wants.  No, reading the Free ads wasn't a sin.  It was entertainment, enlightenment (what some people give away!) and let me relax and think about what God wanted me to write about today.
     There are two definitions to everything.  Only two.  There is the definition according to the world which is sin based and there is the definition according to God which is sinless based.  Both are extremes and are pitted against each other.  The definitions of the world are pitted for the sinful choices of the world.  The definitions of God are of his love and mercy and are FOR you and I.  Big difference.  The first proclaims the "correct" definition which isn't and the second proclaims the "correct" definition and is.  Because we haven't relinquished sin in areas of our lives we are living in the definition given by the world with the expected less than perfection outcome.  We believe, in this state, that we are honoring the "right" definition while all along that definition is pitted against a Godly life that is ours for the taking.  When we surrender our lives to God the Holy Spirit comes into our lives to dwell with us and provide that "most excellent way" of Jesus living through us.  Whether or not we know it, the Holy Spirit draws us to let Jesus have more of our unsanctified life by abandoning the definitions of the world.  In the world it may be perfectly okay to do this or that, think this or that or even say this or that.  Yet it's still wrong.  Giving up that area leaves a void where Jesus can now bless us with a better and more perfect way.  His way. 
     These days of perfectly imperfect living should become shorter and shorter as we move forward with a life in Jesus.  Thank God who is the author and FINISHER of our faith!  For without God the Father who gave us our image, God the Holy Spirit who gives us guidance and conviction and through God the Lord Jesus Christ who gives us life and the forgiveness of sins!  Without the Lord we would be perfectly imperfect according to the definition of the world...and lost.  With the Lord we are perfectly imperfect being defined by the Word given by God, inspired by the Holy Spirit and lived through the Son.  Given the condition of the world and the condition of my soul I think I am living below par but on the right track.  I won't spend a day on earth without sinning.  It's just a fact backed by heavenly verification.  However, the process is well worth going through to be more like Jesus and live in the world until he takes me home.  It's my choice and I like it!

Maybe things aren't what they seem?

     We all have a view of our world that differs from everyone else's world view.  That doesn't mean the view is wrong; it just means the views are different.  I have several views of the world from my lifetime.  The biggest difference was before Jesus and after Jesus.  I also have my "kid on the farm view" versus big kid in the city view.  Then there is the US Army Sargent view versus the unemployed searcher view.  Probably the biggest difference came when I worked with Youth With A Mission (YWAM) in Germany and then transitioning to being part of a church in California.  Talk about whiplash.  Maybe you share the different view from single to married or from husband to husband AND father?  I've had 16 different vocations over my 62 years and each one had a different view.  So, what am I getting at?  Why is it important for Christians to have a point of view and to recognize that others can have a different point of view and be Christian as well?  Some of the changes from one point of view were intentional while others were natural evolution of who I am.  Still others were put upon me whether I wanted them or not.  I can be sure of this:  all things work together for good for those who love the Lord and are called by him.  Sometimes that's hard to understand much less accept when we are in the midst of the world and it's view of who we should be.
     Paul desired to be "all things to all people" that through Christ living through him the Gospel would be offered to all people.  Paul had quite a few different views of the world he lived in and people he lived amongst.  He was an Israelite who was trained in the Old Testament beliefs.  In fact, it was to such a degree that he could not see another view as anything but a threat to his religion.  He killed those who disagreed with the blessing of the religious authorities.  He was on his way to kill off some more of the Christians when his view as changed and things were no longer what they were.  In fact he was to go and present himself to a believer for healing and guidance after the Lord blinded him.  Everyone knew that Paul (then Saul) was on a mission to stamp out Christianity.  Believers were anxious to the introduction of this man as a Christian now.  Fear captivated the Christians of the power and destruction this man could wield.  But God changed their view as well.  Paul went on to be the man of God many of us desire to be.  Truly it was no longer Saul who lived by Christ who lived in and through Paul.  Can I say that about me?  In some instances.  I'm imperfect and that's a view of it's own.
     What God intends as good for us we often see as not good.  The negative occurrences in our lives and the lives of those we love seldom take us to a place of thankfulness.  Rather we are taken to a place where our faith is shaken and challenged.  Why did my loved one die?  Why did your loved one become disabled?  What life's circumstances are taking place that change your view of life and in particular your faith in God?  Do you see the changes as hindrances or do you see them taking you to the next level of faith in what God is doing?  Do you see yourself as part of the plan of God or as the victim of the world?  I've said it and heard others say it many times that we/they have questions of the "Why?" nature to ask God when we get to heaven.  In reality all that is unclear will have no importance in heaven as we will be focused on loving and worshipping Jesus.  The questions won't matter anymore.  What will matter is what we leave behind from our particular point of view.  Did we let the view of Christ live through us and our lives?  Did our view hinder or help people find Jesus?  Sometimes things just aren't what they seem.  That's because the plan of God is so much bigger than me.  I'm part of the plan for sure.  I'm not THE plan for sure. 
     Sometimes we see things differently and let them get in the way of where and who God wants us to go and be.  Sometimes we get ahead of God and he has to slow us down or even stop us in our tracks.  All in all, as a believer we are challenged to get out of the way but instead be the way for Christ to reach a world that hasn't received the view of what new life in Christ can be for them and those they love.  Just as it's always their choice, it's our choice as well. 

Christian wants and needs.

     Wants and needs are two very different elements in life.  We tend to think along the wants side of life and take for granted the needs will be taken care of as well.  Christians are no different and many spend much of their lives focusing on wants even when they think they aren't doing so.  There are many different wants but they all have the same emotional selfishness that accompany them.  We want but we don't have because we ask with wrong motive (James).  We ask and we don't receive because we seek to consume it on ourselves (James).  Selfishness is the center and motivating means to receive what we want.  Solomon, who had everything, said that possessions were meaningless and a waste of time.  Wanting isn't all bad.  We want to be happy.  We want our children to turn out to be great adults.  We want to be able to help others.  These are all good wants for Christians to have.  We want peace and tranquility in our lives.  We want to be able to express our faith without consequence.  Again, all are good wants for Christians to have.  It's when we begin to insert "I" into the equation that things tend to go wrong.  "I" being the motivation factor.  It's not about Jesus but it's about me.  Jesus wants us to be happy, wants our kids to turn out great, wants us to help others, wants us to have peace and tranquility, wants us to be able to express our faith without consequence.  Jesus doesn't necessarily want us to have that new SUV or sports car.  Christians do have valid wants when taken with the right motive.
     Needs are supposed to be different.  We, however, have taken it upon ourselves to say "needs" but mean "wants".  Priority has changed and we have assimilated the language where we use needs but really mean wants.  "I need some ice cream."  No, "I want some ice cream."  These wants portrayed as needs seek to satisfy the wants as unselfish.  It doesn't work.  Remember we have a God who says he will pour out the blessings of heaven so much that we won't be able to contain them.  There are conditions however.  When we actually JUST seek our needs, and only our needs, somehow our wants, if in His will, are provided as well.  It's nice when that works out.  I need some simple things.  I need air to breathe, food to eat and water to drink.  I need love acceptance and approval.  Between those 6 there are no needs that should be over shadowed by wants coming into my thinking.  The wants (and I have some) are a distraction from God's provision.  We are basically telling God we know better what is good for us than he does.  We also know, as Christians, that this isn't true.  God has everyone and everything in his hands.  He brings the rain and sunshine just as the cold and snow.  He sent his Son to live, die and raise from the dead so we can know his love, acceptance and approval.
     What's a person have to do?  Many of our wants are driven to have what others have.  Keeping up with the Joneses is not what Jesus had in mind.  He sent his disciples out to evangelize with the clothes on their backs and sandals on their feet.  He said that those seeking him would care for their needs so they didn't have to worry about anything but telling others about him.  That message hasn't changed.  Many missionaries go out to serve God with faith that He will provide the needs.  If He sends you then he will care for you.  Amazing stories have been written and shared by how miraculous answers to prayers have taken place.  When we complain about what we do not have, cannot have or fail to have (wants) we are telling God he isn't doing his job.  We lose faith that God knows what he is doing with our wants and so we become gods of our wants.  The personal financial debt of the Christian is evidence of that very thing.  I understand borrowing money to buy a house or to deal with mounting medical bills.  I don't understand why we need a steak and champagne lifestyle when we can only afford hamburger and water.  The only answer is to cause ourselves to be comfortable, able to step up to the competition with family friends and enemies.  With Jesus taking care of our needs we should be feeling sufficient.  People should look at our lives and maybe question their own wants and needs.  Whether it's a want in my life or a need; I need to assess whether it glorifies God or me.  It's my choice and it's your choice.

Can God create a rock so big he cannot life?

     And other unanswerable questions we ask.  No matter how you answer the questions you cause a dilemma.  It's like if you are asked: "Have you stopped beating your wife (husband)?"  A yes and a no answer will pin you in a corner that you probably don't deserve.  Sometimes when people ask me about my faith and my Christian life I feel the same way.  The purpose of the question is to cause me to feel backed into a corner where no answer is adequate or sometimes even right.  I know we need to be ready in season and out to give an account of the hope that is within us.  That's what the Bible says.  It also says we shouldn't cast our pearls before swine.  If I enter into a conversation where this lose/lose element is present, there is no way anyone will win.  The win comes by not taking the bait.  In our medical and mental health system (worldwide) we are continually battered by those who seek to treat the symptom rather than the cause.  Why?  Because it's easier to put a band aide on a cut than to stitch up the wound.  What happened to choosing the higher ground, the road less travelled, the right thing to do?  Have we become so immersed in "good enough" to be numb to the "not good enough" of our world?  I once went to a pastors conference.  I'm not like everybody and live my life that way.  I would introduce myself to a new face and after exchanging names and where we were pastors I would ask the awkward question: "Have you given your life to Jesus?"  Most of the answers were: "I'm a pastor!"  Didn't answer the question and I would repeat it.  Eventually I learned whether or not they were a Christian.  They would also know that a title like Pastor didn't mean they were saved.  It was amazing to find some who didn't confess Jesus as Lord. 
     We are admonished to avoid the fool and to not enter into his folly.  That would include answering the questions meant to incite or create chaos where there was no need.  Most of those asking me questions in the Christian realm that are inciting or meant to create chaos come from those who are fearful and hesitant to go further in fear of being found out.  While a mental health counselor I was asked by an instructor of a class I was taking what it was that I looked for in my treatment of people.  I told him that I always look for and focus on the pain.  When you find the pain you find the cause and no longer treat the symptoms.  That requires asking and being asked the honest but difficult questions.  Some have broken down crying when the pain was touched.  Others became angry and expressed anger for the first time in an open manner.  The pain is there.  I have pain.  When my pain is touched my response is anywhere between crying and rage.  But, you say, you are a Christian.  Yes, I am.  That doesn't make the pain go away as if all I have to do is say the secret mantra.  There is no secret mantra.  All there is  for us to do is call upon Jesus. 
     We can skip the unanswerable questions and go straight to the pain.  Do you need Jesus?  Yes, you have pain, we all do.  Do you want Jesus?  Yes, he is the only one who can treat the cause.  Will you call on Jesus?  Only if you are tired of treating the symptoms.  So, what is your impossible question?  Do you think you have sinned too much?  Do you think you have been a terrible person?  Perhaps you find yourself in the quandary of not needing anyone?  The answer is Jesus.  The question is whether you want peace and love in your life.  The question is not whether you want to avoid hell by embracing heaven.  Those are side issues.  The pain is your heart without Jesus.  Remember as you finish reading this today that only Jesus can move that big boulder you have created for him to life.  He can and will do it.  It is always your choice.

'Twas The Night Before Jesus Came'

'Twas The Night Before Jesus Came'

written by Unknown Author

'Twas the night before Jesus came and all through the house
Not a creature was praying, not one in the house.
Their Bibles were lain on the shelf without care
In hopes that Jesus would not come there. The children were dressing to crawl into bed.
Not once ever kneeling or bowing a head.

And Mom in her rocker with baby on her lap
Was watching the Late Show while I took a nap.
When out of the East there arose such a clatter.
I sprang to my feet to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash!
     
When what to my wondering eyes should appear
But angels proclaiming that Jesus was here.
With a light like the sun sending forth a bright ray
I knew in a moment this must be THE DAY! The light of His face made me cover my head
It was Jesus! returning just like He had said.

And though I possessed worldly wisdom and wealth,
I cried when I saw Him in spite of myself.
In the Book of Life which He held in His hand
Was written the name of every saved man.
He spoke not a word as He searched for my name;
When He said "it's not here" my head hung in shame.
     
The people whose names had been written with love
He gathered to take to His Father above.
With those who were ready He rose without a sound.
While all the rest were left standing around. I fell to my knees, but it was too late;
I had waited too long and thus sealed my fate.

I stood and I cried as they rose out of sight;
Oh, if only I had been ready tonight.
In the words of this poem the meaning is clear;
The coming of Jesus is drawing near.
There's only one life and when comes the last call
We'll find that the Bible was true after all!

Wednesday April 14, 2014 4:44 AM

     You may think I've got the wrong date and time in the heading today.  I would agree that today is not the year 2014 and it's more like 7:54 AM.  So, what's the story behind the date?  It's an anniversary of sorts for me.  Sometimes we have experiences so unique that they are hardwired into our brains and on that day every year we revisit the day and what took place.  I have lots of anniversaries with births, deaths, serious incidents, and the like.  I'm sure you do as well.  On April 14, 2014 at 4:44 AM I was brought back to life.  I had died, was on my way to heaven and remember every facet of the experience.  As I was walking towards the gateway I looked around and realized my work wasn't done here on earth.  I was returned to life and found myself taking a deep gasp of breath and feeling very sad that I couldn't go to be with Jesus as I had started to do.  I've longed to go home to Jesus as long as I've been a Christian.  Today the longing is even stronger as that is what anniversaries do.  It's not that God told me to go and do a certain thing with certain people in certain places.  It's more like God told me to go and be a representative of his in every circumstance with everyone.  I remember sitting on my bed and reviewing what had happened.  There was the feeling of being overjoyed, overwhelmed and over stimulated in more ways that I have ever been before.  It was real and still is.
     I have other anniversaries as well.  March 1985 the suicide death of a police officer that I watched die as the ambulance was called.  May 17, 1985, having a man shoot himself in front of me.  August 1985 a suspicious package at a fast food restaurant that contained a newborn baby girl that had been strangled to death.  June 13, 2009 waking from shoulder surgery to learn I was paralyzed from the waist down.  See, most of the anniversaries we think about are negative and have impacted us in ways we cannot have ever thought was possible.  I have PTSD from all of these experiences.  They will be with me in a negative sense for the rest of my life.  I'm sure you have some as well.  Maybe more or less dramatic, but you do have them.  The death experience was different.  It was a positive experience, created no trauma, and encouraged me even though I was sad not to be in heaven.  I know that heaven is real.  I know that when I breathe out my last breath here on earth I will breathe in my first breath in heaven.  That's how quick it happens.  I couldn't tell anyone that before the experience with any kind of proof.  Now I have a testimony of what happens when God takes us home. 
     Another element of anniversaries surfaces on the changes that take place in our lives.  With the negative experiences we often focus on what I did or didn't do, how I could have done this or that differently, or even why didn't I do something before it's too late.  None are meant to be positive and uplifting.  They are sad, unhappy events for most people.  Psychopaths and sociopaths excluded.  Sometimes these events take us down.  Sometimes they take people out through suicide.  I'd be lying if I told you I've never thought of suicide.  Perhaps you have as well.  The first anniversary of my death and being brought back to life has changed those desires.  The hope for the future overshadows the negative of the past.  All of the experiences we have are in the past.  That should be a clue.  We aren't meant to live in the past.  We are meant to live for today.  Not yesterday and not tomorrow.  Today.  Our very lives can be required of us at any moment.  We should be determined to live life and let Christ live through us for this very reason.  When I'm distracted by the past negative anniversaries I am unable to glorify God.  When I am focused on the present and the positive God can use the past experiences, positive and negative, to bring glory and honor to Him.
     As I was walking down that path to the entrance to heaven I was so at peace!  I wasn't concerned about anyone or anything.  I was going to be with the King!  It was when I turned and looked around that I saw the work that needed to be done.  It was then that God brought me back and put me to work.  What would have happened if I hadn't looked around?  I don't know.  It doesn't matter.  What happened was of God.  I'd like to say that I chose to return but know that wasn't my choice.  All I could do was choose to be willing.  That's all I can do today.  Live each day as if it's both my first and last.  One day it will be my first day forever with Jesus.  But today I choose to live my life for Jesus.  It's my choice here on earth.

Christians can be overwhelmed and confused too!

     I tell people that this only happens in my life while I'm awake!  Some people don't get that and it's okay.  I've told people who asked where I live that I live in a state of confusion.  Some people don't get that either and it's okay.  People hear me say that I live my life in a state of positive discontent.  They don't understand and that's okay as well.  My life is a mix of analogies that sometimes aren't congruent with Christian life.  That too is okay.  No one needs to have it all together, have answers for everything, or even be in their "right mind" (whatever that is) in order to be living a Christian life.  Some of the dilemmas I encounter in my life are of my own making and some are a result of the purpose and plan of God taking place as they should.  We don't always understand the "big picture" that God is bringing about.  At least I don't.  Sometimes I feel overwhelmed with the little picture much less the big picture.  Sometimes those pictures are confusing as well.  Questions have come and gone in my life that haven't been answered and could never be.  When I join Jesus in heaven they won't even be remembered.  Why?  Because all that will matter is worshipping Jesus and eating a sundae with him.  Well, maybe not the sundae.  But why not?
     I'm sitting here in my family room facing the east and looking through my sliding glass doors to the patio and back yard.  The huge fir trees partially block the magnificent sunrise happening.  It's so bright I can almost feel the heat even though the temp is in the 40's.  The trees are so still they seem like monuments.  Not a branch is moving as there is no wind and not even a slight breeze.  Yet, there is so much going on.  Bill, my wild coyote, is lurking somewhere in the back acreage of where I live.  The deer are still bedded down somewhere in the thickets that are there as well.  The birds aren't up and at the bird feeders but the Robins are busy finding worms and bugs in my lawn.  The rhubarb in the garden is growing so fast you can almost see and hear it grow.  The blossoms on the fruit trees are popping out so fast it's more like popping corn!  And during this brief moment so many other God created events are taking place in my world that I am not able to take them all in.   I'm overwhelmed with the creation God has bestowed upon me.  I'm confused why so many years of my life were spent living so hard and fast that I missed them. 
     Sometimes at night I go out in the backyard and look up in the sky at all of the stars.  Incredible!  My mind begins to wonder what is out there.  Eventually I get to that place where I've been stuck since I was a young man.  My mind cannot go past where the end of space comes.  Where does it all lead?  How big is it really?  Is heaven out there or somewhere near.  Then, because I have ADHD, I begin to wonder about creation and where all of life began.  I'm not hung up on the evolving of the world as God has made it to evolve just like he has for mankind.  Evolution by Darwin is fake so my mind doesn't go there.  However, somewhere in my youth I began to ask the question of where God came from.  I know the Bible tells me that He has always existed.  Existed where?  I'm confused.  I'm overwhelmed,.  In the end, diversions like these are mere mental exercises subordinate to the knowledge that God is, God created, and God died on the cross so that I might be saved.  Wow!  Overwhelming grace and confusing mercy for someone like me.  It was and is his choice. 

Sometimes we are the devils tools.

     Are you?  I have been.  It's not a great leap of the imagination to learn that we are tools that the devil has used or is using.  All it takes is for us to do nothing and we are his tools.  At least that's what the Bible says.  Being the devils tools doesn't make you an unbeliever.  All it does is make you an ineffectual tool for Jesus and an effectual tool for the devil.  I know, it's only Tuesday and I'm already hitting you with truths you would rather not deal with.  But then you know that would be true on most every day.  Even on Sunday.  We go to church, learn about Jesus and what he wants us to do and then go home to do nothing for him.  You do it, I do it, and most pastors do it as well.  Doesn't make things right though.  There are times when the greatest opportunities spring up and we answer them by sabotaging the very work the Holy Spirit has spent time and effort in setting up.  Then the time comes, his servant (us) are in place, the moment comes and we do nothing.  We are afraid or we don't care or we really don't know Jesus.  which excuse is yours?
     One tool the devil loves to use is our closed mouths.  I know that the Bible cautions us on opening our mouths and being seen as a fool.  I know that Jesus was silent during his trial.  I know that there is a time for silence.  I know these things.  So do you.  Instead of being instant in and out of season to give a reason for the hope that is within us, we close our mouths.  We can talk about sports, TV shows, music, cars, dresses and whatever else at the drop of a hat.  But somehow, we cannot or will not talk about Jesus and what he means to us.  When we keep our mouths closed the word can only be transferred by our actions.  We are the only Bible that some people read.  That being said, we become the devils tool in that arena as well.  We act in such a way that no one would guess that we profess Christ as Lord and Savior.  Don't think so?  How about our sense of entitlement in stores, on the road, when we are at work?  What do people think of your ignoring your children, yelling at your children, swearing at your children?  Is that what Jesus commanded us to do?  The devil loves to use our actions to discredit the Gospel in your and my life. 
     One of the greatest of tools that the devil loves to use is sitting on our nightstands and shelves.  Maybe your coffee table or counter.  It could even be in your car's glove box or on the dash.  Yes, I'm talking about your Bible.  You have one.  You have read it.  You have stashed it.  When it's stashed, it's the devils tool.  He hates the Word but can quote it better than you or I can.  He wants you to be ashamed of the Bible.  If he can get you to leave it alone, put it out of sight, and not read it, he has your Bible as a tool.  We may take time to read the paper, trash novels, travel guides and the latest comic books but don't make time for the Word.  When was the last time you were in a group conversation talking about a serious topic and you were asked for your opinion because you were a Christian?  You said, "Well, the Bible is clear on that and taking a pen from work is stealing from your employer and wrong."  Substitute any other topic you want.  We become the devils tools when we don't stand for God.  The man who stands for nothing will fall for anything.  All it takes for evil to triumph is for good men and women to do nothing. 
     God has been so good to us.  He has blessed us beyond measure.  He wishes to talk and walk with us every moment of our lives.  His desire consumes us through his love for us.  If we appreciate the love of God we won't be the devils tools.  It's your choice and it's my choice.

Well, at least I got up this morning.

     Some days are good, some are bad and others fall between the extreme of each end.  We all seem able to enjoy and even invite the good days.  Good days are what life was supposed to deliver day after day for all of eternity.  We blew that and have lived with the rest of the spectrum ever since.  I'll  still choose the good day over other days when given the chance.  However, we don't always have that chance.  Sometimes our days go from good to bad in 30 seconds and other days it takes a lot longer.  Not all days go from good to bad.  Sometimes we go from bad to good.  What is it that makes the difference.  I believe it's a combination of events and the people tied to them.  None of us are perfect and we tend to create the day we are having.  Sometimes it's more than a frame of mind or an acceptance of events that move our day in one direction or another.  Sometimes the deciding factor is someone we don't know that injects the good or the bad into our situation.  The death of someone we love can turn happiness to mourning and it should.  That doesn't make the day bad nor does it make it good.  The day just is.  The birth of a child or grandchild or great-grandchild can make a dreary day full of bright light and hope.  So there exists a multi-leveled input that creates our day.  In the end, we have the ultimate choice what kind of day we are going to have.  Paul counted it "all joy" to suffer the persecution for the sake of following Jesus.  I don't always do that.  When I do, sometimes I don't do it very well!  I imagine that I'm not alone in that battle for my happiness.
     There were many times in my life when I lived in such a way that I was always waiting with dread for the "other foot to drop."  Not exactly Christian and not good for any aspect of my life.  There were many times I "put on a happy face" in order to get through my day of being whatever to whomever wherever.  Not exactly Christian either and definitely only good for other people.  Yet, that's part of what we do when the day is before us.  We choose.  I woke up on the right side of the grass this morning.  That's what makes it a good day.  I woke up with Jesus by my side regardless.  That's what makes it a great day.  What I do after I get out of bed is entirely up to what interacts with my life and whether or not I let Jesus handle it.  I know that whatever I do to handle life is less than what Jesus can do and wants to do in and through me.  My "spirit is willing but my flesh is weak" seems to be what challenges me most.  I want to do what Christ wants me to do.  I really do!  Yet, the old man in me seems to want to stay safe in my past cycles, reactions and thinking.  That's when the good can turn into the bad real fast.  That's exactly what Satan wants to have happen in my life.  I choose whether I let him steal my joy or not.  Christ died on the cross so that I could do just that.  God wants me to "have life and have it more abundantly."
     As if my day isn't complex enough for me, I have people I associate with and interact with almost daily.  These range from loved ones to ones bent on my destruction.  When I engage these groups or individuals my attention needs to be focused on the offensive and not on defense.  Choosing to live my life intentionally for Jesus helps me keep the rain from falling on my parade.  Choosing to succumb to the negative of the world around me takes me down roads that aren't intended by the Lord I serve.  What I do with my day makes an immense affect on the lives of those around me.  When I choose to let the real person in me live life with Jesus people can have hope and believe and have faith that they can as well.  I try to stay away from negative people.  Jesus seemed to seek them out.  He, ultimate good, and I, ultimate whatever, need to come to terms.  It would be most beneficial if I let Jesus live his life through me than to make Jesus live my life with little input from him.   That doesn't mean I'll always choose the best.  I'm human like everyone else and I get in his way.  Jesus has a plan A for each of us.  It begins with a good day realizing what he has done in order to offer salvation for our unworthy souls.  Plan A is always the best.  When I choose a plan B, Jesus puts another Plan A in front of me.  That's the way my day goes.  Most of the time I choose plan A.  That's a good day.  What are you and I going to choose today?  It's really our choice.

Does this make me look Christian?

    Are we looking good as Christians?  Do we wear the right clothes, drive the right cars, have the right home, eat the right food, exercise the right way, hang out with the right people, and say the right things?  Do we really wear our Christianity as well as we do the above?  We shouldn't.  We should do better.  The Bible tells us to "put on Christ" and be him to the world.  It doesn't say do and be the "right" thing in other's eyes.  Yet, sadly, that's what we tend to do.  My new neighbor moved in this weekend.  I had been doing some "dirty" work in my bib overalls and baseball cap.  I put down my string trimmer and went over to say hi.  It wasn't until I went back to work that I began to think of how my neighbor saw me.  Since he was in the midst of moving I'm guessing he didn't pay particular attention to detail.  Not that it should matter.  Yet, when his wife and kids show up what will he tell them about the neighbor next door.  I'm hoping that my friendly manner and welcoming attitude will win out.  It's my desire to put my best foot forward with people.  My offer to shake his hand, inquire about him generally, and offer any help I can should make an impression.  I'm sure he wasn't impressed with anything other than he wanted to get back to work unloading the rental truck.  He did mention he had many loads to go.  So, part of what he saw me do and be was available but not in his face.  I went back to work and so did he. 
     Just what is it that people see in us that they want to know us and be known by us?  Is there some strange magic that takes place or a "vibe" that tells them that despite how we look they can still talk with us and feel safe?  My neighbor lives about 200 feet away from me.  Yet, there are others who come within our realm of influence that also make assessments of who we are, who we represent and how safe we are.  Jesus told us to be servants and to be wise in our interactions with people of the world.  Simply put, we need to use some common sense to make people hungry for what we have.  There is a need everywhere to be "fishers of men" and to troll for Jesus.  If you have ever fished, you know that the fish are in control.  I've seen fish swim around my bait just because they aren't interested.  How much more the men, women and children of our environment?  I didn't go to meet my neighbor for any other reason than to welcome he and his family and to let them know that I'm not going to borrow their lawn mower right off.  I wasn't going to ask him for a ride or any other thing that was a perceived need of mine.  I went to introduce some civility and respect with friendship being the base element desired.  I didn't offer and he didn't ask for anything further.  Was I clothed in what Jesus wanted him to see?  I think so.
      Sometimes we cloth ourselves in such a manner that all people see is an impenetrable fortress.  Stay away or be shot!  Not exactly a good reflection.  When I spot Mormon's on bicycles I don't run away.  When the JW's knock on my door I don't ignore them.  Why?  Because they are not and cannot be a threat to the living God who lives in me.  With being clothes in Christ we present him and not ourselves.  Yet, there are Christians who are not clothed in Christ.  Yes, I said Christians who are not clothed in Christ.  We can call ourselves Christian, make a commitment to Christ and then proceed to do nothing with our faith.  To do this we simply do nothing, say nothing and put on our invisible suit so people won't see, won't have expectations, and won't ask us anything remotely associated to that hope that is supposed to be in us.  What happens is the Christian who does this is no earthly good for Jesus to use.  What happens is missed opportunities for Christ to use us to fish for men.  What happens is our neighbors, friends and relatives face a potential eternity in hell because we chose to not clothe ourselves with Jesus. 
     I am NOT perfect.  I do not always clothe myself with Christ.  I'm not always sociable.  I sometimes am so self centered that I cannot see the need of others or the very thing God wants me to do.  I would imagine that you fall into that same boat where fish aren't being caught.  What we do in the day that God has given us is a choice.  I can either clothe myself with Jesus and serve his purpose wherever I am, whomever I am with and whatever I am doing or I can choose not to.  It's my choice and it's your choice.