by Steve Ham, AiG-U.S.
“Knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Peter 1:20-21)
In God We Trust takes a deeper look at living a truly God-focused life. You’ll learn not only to defend your faith according to the authority of God’s Word, but also to live it out in every part of life.
Today’s big question: why is God’s character important?
When Moses was told by God to go to Pharaoh and ask him to release the people of Israel from bondage, he went to deliver a message that he knew would not be well received. Moses anticipated the logical question that the Egyptians would ask of him, so he asked it of God: “who shall I say has sent me?” Whether it’s a big claim, request, or even command, the strength is found only in its source of origin. Moses was told to go to Pharaoh and tell him that this command came from the “I Am.” This very statement of who God is was to point to God’s limitless and flawless character. The omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent God, the I Am was sending His message to Pharaoh through His mouthpiece, Moses.
Claims of Scripture are similar to this. In today’s verse from 2 Peter, we read one of the big claims of the Bible. This is that none of it came from human will or interpretation but from the very inspiration of the Holy Spirit, who is God.
In 2 Timothy 3:16, we read that the Bible was actually “breathed out” (the Greek word theopneustos, often translated “inspired”) from God. This means that anyone reading the Bible is truly reading the Word of God. The reliability, credibility, and authority of this Word is ultimately dependent upon the character of its source. If we were to read this book and find inconsistency in the character of God, how then could we take the Bible’s claims of ultimate and pure truth as being credible? If there were “flaws” in God’s power (which there are not), how could we ultimately accept His authority?
Moses had none of his own authority to command Pharaoh, but the authority of the command to “let my people go” came from the sovereign Author of all things. Pharaoh doubted God’s kingship, but he experienced the consistency of God’s character through plagues, losing his own son, and in the drowning of his army. We too must not simply read that God has a flawless character but see this consistency in the pages of His Word.
Today’s big idea: the Bible’s claims are as strong as the God who makes them.
What to pray: ask God to show His awesome character to you through the pages of the Bible that you might submit to the authority of His Word.
5/15/2010
"For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son (Jesus), so that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16
"In Him (Jesus), we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace." Ephesians 1:7
"For it by grace that you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works, so that no one can boast." Ephesians 2:8-9
Can Creationists Be “Real” Scientists?
by Answers In Genesis http://www.answersingenesis.org
Some evolutionists have stated that creationists cannot be real scientists. Several years ago, the National Academy of Sciences published a guidebook entitled Teaching about Evolution and the Nature of Science. This guidebook states that biological evolution is “the most important concept in modern biology, a concept essential to understanding key aspects of living things.” Famous geneticist Theodosius Dobzhansky stated that “nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution.” But is a belief in particles-to-people evolution really necessary to understand biology and other sciences? Is it even helpful? Have any technological advances been made because of a belief in evolution?javascript:void(0)
To continue reading this article go to the website:
http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/nab2/can-creationists-be-real-scientists
© Copyright 2011 Answers in Genesis
Some evolutionists have stated that creationists cannot be real scientists. Several years ago, the National Academy of Sciences published a guidebook entitled Teaching about Evolution and the Nature of Science. This guidebook states that biological evolution is “the most important concept in modern biology, a concept essential to understanding key aspects of living things.” Famous geneticist Theodosius Dobzhansky stated that “nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution.” But is a belief in particles-to-people evolution really necessary to understand biology and other sciences? Is it even helpful? Have any technological advances been made because of a belief in evolution?javascript:void(0)
To continue reading this article go to the website:
http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/nab2/can-creationists-be-real-scientists
© Copyright 2011 Answers in Genesis
Remember November
iVote Billboards | A Project of the American Family Assoication
Here is your chance to openly display your dissatisfaction with Congress and let others know that you will "Remember in November" and are no longer going to sit by and do nothing.
In November, we will have the opportunity to let Washington experience firsthand the will of the American electorate. Thirty-six seats will be determined in the U.S. Senate in the November election. Representatives only serve two-year terms, so all 435 seats in the House are up for grabs.
Americans are outraged by the abuse of power in Washington. We must keep the momentum going by letting others know there is something they can do about the mess in Washington. In strong solidarity, we will remind elected officials that their power is derived from the governed! That's us. WE THE PEOPLE!
http://action.afa.net/ivote/
Lost Boy: The Greg Laurie Story
Greg Laurie had everything going against him in life. Born out of wedlock, Greg spent his childhood living with his aunts, grandparents and two stints in military school when not living with his seven-time divorced alcoholic mother. Searching for meaning and purpose in his life, Greg immersed himself in partying and later drug experimentation all which only added to his meaningless existence. At the age of 17, unexpectedly, Greg Laurie became a Christian. In his autobiography Lost Boy, Greg Laurie speaks candidly about his struggles, challenges and how his life was radically transformed, how he is now dedicated to reaching others like him, who are searching for meaning and purpose in life. In the early 70's, Greg Laurie started one of the largest churches in America today, Harvest Christian Fellowship. He travels the world, having spoken to over 4 million people in his large scale events, Harvest Crusades. Greg Laurie's legacy has been seasoned with trials and questions, but if God can take a confused, lost boy from a severely dysfunctional family and raise him to be one of the nation's leading evangelists and pastors, what can God do with you?
5/14/2010
A Survey I Took About Prayer (In Touch Ministries)
Thank you for taking the time to complete this simple ten-question survey. Your responses will help In Touch understand how to minister to you and others more effectively in the future.
1. Do you believe God answers prayers? Why or Why not?
Yes, because it has happened to me, and because the Bible talks about prayer; that it's something good that we should do, even Jesus prayed to the Father. It is communication with God and it is part of our relationship with Him.
2. What motivates you to pray?
Because I know that it's important. The Bible says we should do so and because I know that it works. It's part of our relationship with God, communicating with Him. I know that sometimes all I can do is pray if I can't do much else. God is the #1 that I turn to.
3. What keeps you from praying?
Getting caught up in other things, feeling busy or tired.
4. When do you pray?
Different times throughout the day, short prayers. I pray the most when I'm alone by myself, could be any time of the day, but it's usually at night before I go to bed.
5. Do you think prayer influences God?
Yes. I believe that God is going to end up doing whatever He wants to do and that everything is according to His will, but I believe there are times when He allows us to influence what He wants to do. I think it's part of the relationship factor.
6. Do you ever pray with others?
Yes, sometimes. The Bible says that "where two or three are gathered in my name there I am in the midst of them" and that "if two of you on earth should agree on anything it will be given to you by my Father in Heaven." So, although I believe that prayer on your own is powerful enough, it always helps and is encouraging to have more than one, as the Bible also says "two are better than one."
7. What do you pray about the most?
I pray the most about blessings, protection, help, forgiveness of sins and salvation for those who aren't saved.
8. How has God answered a particular prayer?
I usually receive what I ask for. But, sometimes God answers me through a sort of sign, could be anything, but it's just His way of letting me know or confirming something.
9. Can anyone pray?
Yes, of course.
10. Why pray?
Kind of goes back to the first question. I pray because it's communicating with God, it's part of having a real relationship with Him. It never fails to comfort me and it makes me feel better when I do. I pray because the Bible says we should and because it's good. Even Jesus prayed to the Father, and Jesus is our Lord and Savior, and our best example of how to live our lives and worship God. And because prayer works. It also encourages people and can be used as a testimony for others. There are many good reasons to pray.
11. Gender
Female.
12. Age
26
13. Geographic Location
Texas
14. How did you hear about this survey?
Email.
Thank you again for your participation in this survey and your partnership in leading people worldwide into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ. If you have anything further to share with us, please feel free to send an e-mail to askdrstanley@intouch.org or contactcenter@intouch.org.
Survey URL: http://msg2svc.net/Jsp/Sv1.jsp?p=intouch&s=1&i=120&u=0&v=n
1. Do you believe God answers prayers? Why or Why not?
Yes, because it has happened to me, and because the Bible talks about prayer; that it's something good that we should do, even Jesus prayed to the Father. It is communication with God and it is part of our relationship with Him.
2. What motivates you to pray?
Because I know that it's important. The Bible says we should do so and because I know that it works. It's part of our relationship with God, communicating with Him. I know that sometimes all I can do is pray if I can't do much else. God is the #1 that I turn to.
3. What keeps you from praying?
Getting caught up in other things, feeling busy or tired.
4. When do you pray?
Different times throughout the day, short prayers. I pray the most when I'm alone by myself, could be any time of the day, but it's usually at night before I go to bed.
5. Do you think prayer influences God?
Yes. I believe that God is going to end up doing whatever He wants to do and that everything is according to His will, but I believe there are times when He allows us to influence what He wants to do. I think it's part of the relationship factor.
6. Do you ever pray with others?
Yes, sometimes. The Bible says that "where two or three are gathered in my name there I am in the midst of them" and that "if two of you on earth should agree on anything it will be given to you by my Father in Heaven." So, although I believe that prayer on your own is powerful enough, it always helps and is encouraging to have more than one, as the Bible also says "two are better than one."
7. What do you pray about the most?
I pray the most about blessings, protection, help, forgiveness of sins and salvation for those who aren't saved.
8. How has God answered a particular prayer?
I usually receive what I ask for. But, sometimes God answers me through a sort of sign, could be anything, but it's just His way of letting me know or confirming something.
9. Can anyone pray?
Yes, of course.
10. Why pray?
Kind of goes back to the first question. I pray because it's communicating with God, it's part of having a real relationship with Him. It never fails to comfort me and it makes me feel better when I do. I pray because the Bible says we should and because it's good. Even Jesus prayed to the Father, and Jesus is our Lord and Savior, and our best example of how to live our lives and worship God. And because prayer works. It also encourages people and can be used as a testimony for others. There are many good reasons to pray.
11. Gender
Female.
12. Age
26
13. Geographic Location
Texas
14. How did you hear about this survey?
Email.
Thank you again for your participation in this survey and your partnership in leading people worldwide into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ. If you have anything further to share with us, please feel free to send an e-mail to askdrstanley@intouch.org or contactcenter@intouch.org.
Survey URL: http://msg2svc.net/Jsp/Sv1.jsp?p=intouch&s=1&i=120&u=0&v=n
Hollywood Prayer Network Newsletter (May)
Dear HPN members!
It’s May! April showers bring May flowers, but in Hollywood it also brings Upfronts, announcing the new Fall TV series, the Cannes Film Festival and a list of new summer films. It also brings broken hearts and hurting people who need prayer. So, let’s take a walk in the beautiful weather and pray for the people in Hollywood!
SUMMARY:
• The National Day of Prayer Hollywood event held at Bel Air Presbyterian Church was AWESOME!
• Let’s continue to pray for Sandra Bullock as she finalizes her divorce and her adoption of baby Louis
• Keep praying for recent and continuing industry professionals who can’t get work
• HPN is still in need of intercessors to join our “I to I” prayer team and pray for industry professionals
• Pray for the release of the 2010 summer blockbusters that began last week with “Iron Man 2”
• All of the network and cable “Upfronts” are happening May 17 – 20th
• The annual Cannes Film Festival (Festival De Cannes) opened on May 12th and goes through May 23rd
• Pray for the writers and producers who are creating the content of films, TV shows, songs & video games
• Pray for the wet, hurting and homeless now in Nashville after the terrible flooding and storms
• Pray for Elton John, the world-renowned music icon who has lived a life of fame, riches, addiction, & pain
• Pray for Geert Heetebrij, ('93 LAFSC grad) who needs God’s provision for a grad screenwriting program
• Pray for HPN’s Thai LCD, Manop Moonsri and his upcoming "You Are Not Alone Concert 2010"
• Pray about taking a life-changing short-term missions trip to Kenya with other industry professionals
• Don’t forget about the weekly prayer events and other upcoming gatherings in our community
• Let us know if you have a prayer group that is open for others in Hollywood to join
PRAISES:
• The National Day of Prayer Hollywood event held at Bel Air Presbyterian Church was AWESOME! After 18 years of gathering industry professionals to pray on the NDOP in various sound stages, and churches, this year at Bel Air Pres. was the largest (over 500 people attended) and so exciting. We spent the evening with industry ministries and local churches, with prayer leaders, pastors and entertainment professionals, all praising God, worshiping and praying together in an evening that eternally impacted our industry, our city, our state and our nation. Next year, you must come and join this incredible celebration of God through prayer and praise! And thanks to the whole planning team and Bel Air Pres. Leadership for making it happen.
UPDATES:
• Let’s continue to pray for Sandra Bullock as she finalizes her divorce to Jesse James and finalizes her adoption of her new 4-month-old baby boy named Louis Bardo Bullock. Sandra, who adopted Louis with Jesse back in January, has decided to keep Louis and raise him as a single parent. Let’s pray that the Lord honors her decision by supplying all she needs to raise Louis as a young man who comes to know Jesus. And we have to keep praying for Sandra’s own heart and journey with God, during this time of huge transition. “I'm sad and I'm scared," Bullock says of the divorce.
• Let’s continue to pray for the people who are trying to break in to the entertainment industry and those professionals who haven’t been able to work. The most needed prayers are those asking the Lord to give each person a confirmation of whether they should continue to persevere or whether He has plans for them elsewhere. It’s such a hard thing to know God’s direction when we’re passionate about our dreams and yet not able to make a living. A common question amongst artists and creative professionals is – am I doing the right thing? Please join all of us in this difficult and heart felt prayer.
• HPN is still in need of intercessors to join our “I to I” prayer team so that you can be blessed as you uphold a professional in need of prayer. We have media professionals waiting for a prayer partner. Might that person be you? Or do you know a prayer group who would be willing to pray for their own “media missionary?” Please let us know. Just email Caren@hpnemail.org
REQUESTS:
• The release of the 2010 summer blockbusters began last week with “Iron Man 2.” Remember to pray for the films’ stars, writers, directors, producers, distributors and studios as you enthusiastically support the summer box office. Don’t just enjoy the films, but pray for the filmmakers!
• All of the network and cable UPFRONTS are happening May 17 - 20 as the networks announce and present their new and returning shows for the 2010-2011 TV season “upfront” to advertisers and agencies. The major networks presenting shows are ABC, CBS, NBC, The CW, TNT, BS, MTV & ESPN. Let’s pray that the advertisers will respond with wisdom and moral integrity as they look at the choice of shows to invest in for this season.
• The annual Cannes Film Festival (Festival De Cannes) opened on May 12th and goes through May 23rd. It is the largest international film festival in the world, premiering and screening major feature films of the upcoming year to the film buyers, distributors and filmmakers. Pray that the Christians there will be shining lights and sources of hope to the many buyers, sellers, presenters and audience, that God's hand will lovingly touch each person there, and that miracles will happen at this most powerful gathering of global filmmakers. For more info on the Festival, click on: http://www.festival-cannes.fr/en/about.html
• Please pray for the writers and producers who are creating the content of films, TV shows, songs and video games, to feel a moral responsibility for their work. Whether they know God personally or not, let’s lift them up and ask the Holy Spirit to open their eyes to truth, to guide their ideas, and to help them tap in to the Lord’s creative juices.
• Pray for the wet, hurting and homeless in Nashville after the terrible flooding and storms. Our extended family in the music community in Nashville has asked for our prayers as they drain water out of their damaged homes and help one another find new furniture or places to live. If anyone wants to take a short term mission trip to Nashille, our dear friends at Artists in Christian Testimony, Intl., are doing everything they can to help the local artists. Click here to find out the needs and even how you can help: http://www.actinternational.org/
• Let’s pray for Elton John, the world-renown music icon who has lived a life of fame, riches, addiction, bulimia, gay relationships, bankruptcy and heartbreak. He needs to find the Lord in these later years of his life in order to find peace, and our prayers can make a difference. We often forget that wonderful performers who recorded songs that defined great eras in our lives, and gave us joyful memories, are hurting, broken and lost. Let’s give something back to Elton by praying for God’s miraculous touch on his heart and life.
REQUEST FROM AN HPN MEMBER:
• Let’s pray for Geert Heetebrij, who was a '93 graduate of the LAFSC. He was just accepted into the MFA Screenwriting program at Pepperdine, starting this Fall, and has asked the Hollywood Prayer Network to please pray for God's financial provision so that he can attend Pepperdine's grad program. Will you pray for Geert and the many other Christian film students who have great opportunities for a fine education in film and television, but are struggling to pay the tuition needed to complete their schooling.
REQUEST FROM THAILAND LOCAL CHAPTER:
• Manop Moonsri, our Thailand LCD, has asked that we pray with him for his work with the "You Are Not Alone Concert 2010" on June 6th at the Khonhkan Hall Central Plaza in Khonkhan. May the Lord use Manop’s love for the Lord to touch the lives of all the participants and attendees at this concert.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
• Would you like to go to Africa? Our own HPN Board member and friend, Doug Millham, has a unique ministry of combining his service to the Hollywood artistic community with running an orphanage for children with AIDS in Kenya. Doug has invited any industry professional to join his Discover the World Short-Term Mission trip to Kenya. It is our prayer that members of our community would experience another side of the world, in order to bring back a deeper wisdom, a richer relationship with the Lord and a new perspective on life through spending time in Africa. Would you pray about being a part of their exciting Vacation Bible School and Work Project trip from July 31 – August 13th? With more than 500 children now being helped in 6 projects across Kenya, the need to love and care for them is greater than ever. For more information click on: www.discovertheworld.org or email Dougdtw@aol.com.
• Don’t forget about the weekly prayer events in our community where we would LOVE to have any of you just show up to pray and to get prayed for:
Wednesdays at noon in the Wiley Chapel of Hollywood Presbyterian Church. Email Serdman@fpch.org for more info.
Every 2nd & 4th Thursday nights at 7:00pm at the Wiley Chapel of Hollywood Presbyterian Church. Email Caren@hpnemail.org for more info.
• For all the other on-going and one time events, conferences, gatherings, Bible Studies and screenings, please click on http://www.hollywoodconnect.com/connection-central and http://www.hollywoodconnect.com/view/OngoingEvents.
• If you have any industry prayer groups that are open for others to join, PLEASE let us know and we’ll post them for our whole Christian entertainment community to be aware of. We would love to have every Christian in Hollywood connected to a prayer group. Just email me at Karen@hpnemail.org.
Thank you so much for your prayers this month. You are a part of something so much bigger than what any of us can do on our own. So, be encouraged and know that we are so grateful for you!
Warmly,
Karen and Caren
TIP OF THE MONTH:
Real artists can get some real answers to tough spiritual questions on Joel Pelsue’s video blog: http://www.a-e-m.org/html/real_answers_for_real_artists.html
QUOTE OF THE MONTH:
"Film is a disease. When it infects your bloodstream, it takes over as the number one hormone; it bosses the enz Iago to your psyche. As with heroin, the antidote to film is more film." -Frank Capra
VERSE OF THE MONTH:
“So I ask you to make full use of the gift that God gave you when I placed my hands on you.” II Timothy 1:6
http://www.hollywoodprayernetwork.org/
"the best thing you can do when you get embarrassed is to just laugh at yourself, it will get you through some really tough times" ~Joey on "Full House"
"People have their lists of what they want in their partner, and three-quarters of them are superficial. If life doesn't give you what you want, it'll present you with what you need and you don't realize it. That need is far greater and more profound than the little list thing." ~Sandra Bullock
"People have their lists of what they want in their partner, and three-quarters of them are superficial. If life doesn't give you what you want, it'll present you with what you need and you don't realize it. That need is far greater and more profound than the little list thing." ~Sandra Bullock
Praise Report
I have a praise report that I wanted to say. My brother has had a lot of work that needed to be done on his teeth, for a long time. He gets a lot of pain from it, about every six months. Well, he doesn't have insurance and he couldn't afford to get the work done at the dentist (it would cost over $10,000). He went there about a year ago, took x-rays and was given a prescription for the pain and infection. About six months later the pain came back. He was able to get more pain pills then it went away again. Then six months after that it came back yet again. He tried to get more pain pills, but they wouldn't give it him because it had been over a year since he last had his teeth checked. So, he had to make another appointment for the dentist. I think the dentist's office got to the point where they realized that my brother, our family does not have the money to get those teeth worked on. It's just too much. So they took more x-rays, for free this time, and referred him to a ministry in the city that does dental work for free on fridays. It was like a miracle that there is such a ministry as this. So, my brother had to wait another week to be able to do it. It's all first come, first serve. He had to get there early, it opens at 7:30AM. He got there at around 7AM and there was already 6 people ahead of him. Thankfully, he was able to get in. They took more x-rays I think and they pulled one of his teeth that was the big one that was causing a lot of pain. My brother told me that everyone there was super nice and great to him. They said that my brother was a good patient. He has to go back in a couple of weeks. He still has a lot more work to be done. But, I just wanted to give a shout out to this ministry, that there is such a thing as this that does real good work for people that are in dire need of it, who are poor or just don't have a way to get the dental work done. But, I don't think this ministry only does dental work. My Dad told me that there was other stuff there like a place for someone to come in and do their laundry. So, this is obviously a ministry that is trying to provide real tangible help to the needy. I praise God for this ministry and for those of us who really try to help out. The ministry is called Timon's Ministry.
http://www.timonsministries.org/
http://www.timonsministries.org/
Vanity
I had a dream and thought about vanity and this video...
I had a dream last night and I think it was about vanity. I don't know if it was a God-given dream or what, but I definitely felt like there was something good that I got out of it.
I don't remember every detail or even the order of the scenes, but I'll try to remember the best I can. The dream starts off in a sort of restaurant, diner type of place. I am talking to a couple of woman, one of them older and the other younger. The older woman talks about a certain cream that you can put on your face that wipes away the vanity. I think that's definitely different. I decide to try some of that. I take the bottle and think to myself that it will make me look better. It is a dark colored cream, a sort of brownish color. I put it on and it feels like putting lotion on, but after a while it feels like it's stretching my face, a tightness I guess. Then, I start to see the effects of it on my face. My heart begins to sink as I see what it's done to my face. Some of my skin has disappeared off of my face to make it look closer to the skeleton, tho not completely. It's still mostly skin and flesh. Where I would have spots (breakouts) is the worse and also my nose looks like the skeleton version with just a think layer of skin. I immediately try to cover this up with make-up. It feels like I spend about an hour doing this. Finally, the younger woman comes into the restroom and starts talking to me. Eventually, we are outside and she tells me that I'm not beautiful and a couple of other things (this scene might have happened first, but I don't remember). I feel really bad about what she said. Then, I turn around and think to myself, "God calls me beautiful" and I told her that I don't believe what she said, and that I am beautiful. I wasn't necessarily thinking about looks when I said that, but the acceptance of myself as being beautiful as God calls me beautiful. Then, later on I am in a dining hall with the young woman. There are round tables that have white table clothes. There is a group of young people in there. We are all eating dinner. Even though I feel stuffed, I still have a couple pieces of bread from the pasta meal. Most everyone is done eating and they just start to leave. I decide to finish eating those last pieces. I feel like a blob doing that, but oh well. Then, after almost everyone is gone and I'm finished eating, we are given an entirely new dish by one of the servers and it's looks like a sort of healthy casserole of some type. It looks green. Now realizing that we have this new meal that is better than the first, the young woman says something about how we all should have waited and then we would have all had this, but most everyone missed out. She said "tisk tisk." So, I felt like I had done something good by staying there for so long afterwards. That's pretty much all that I remember from the dream.
When I woke up from the dream, I felt like maybe the dream is about vanity. Physical looks are vain because they don't last. Outward beauty doesn't last. Youth doesn't last. The only thing that can last is our character, what's in our heart. Instead of focusing so much on our outward looks, we should focus more on our characteristics. I think the turning point in the dream for me is when I realized how vain my face is and that it's my characteristics that truly make me who I am: my strength, positivity, friendliness, faith, frugality and patience. I realized that it's not really my outward beauty that makes me beautiful, but my inward beauty, the very fact that God calls me beautiful is the only true reason that I'm beautiful. It doesn't matter what I say or anyone else says, but what God says. He's the one that really counts in all of this. And I'm also thinking of a few Bible quotes (1 Samuel 16:7, Proverbs 31:30 & Isaiah 53:2): "Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart" & "Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised" & (a prophecy referring to how most people would look at Jesus when He was on earth) "There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him" (and this is Jesus we're talking about, the King of Kings, the most perfect beautiful human being ever; but apparently on the outside he wasn't so impressive to most people of the time).
I had a dream last night and I think it was about vanity. I don't know if it was a God-given dream or what, but I definitely felt like there was something good that I got out of it.
I don't remember every detail or even the order of the scenes, but I'll try to remember the best I can. The dream starts off in a sort of restaurant, diner type of place. I am talking to a couple of woman, one of them older and the other younger. The older woman talks about a certain cream that you can put on your face that wipes away the vanity. I think that's definitely different. I decide to try some of that. I take the bottle and think to myself that it will make me look better. It is a dark colored cream, a sort of brownish color. I put it on and it feels like putting lotion on, but after a while it feels like it's stretching my face, a tightness I guess. Then, I start to see the effects of it on my face. My heart begins to sink as I see what it's done to my face. Some of my skin has disappeared off of my face to make it look closer to the skeleton, tho not completely. It's still mostly skin and flesh. Where I would have spots (breakouts) is the worse and also my nose looks like the skeleton version with just a think layer of skin. I immediately try to cover this up with make-up. It feels like I spend about an hour doing this. Finally, the younger woman comes into the restroom and starts talking to me. Eventually, we are outside and she tells me that I'm not beautiful and a couple of other things (this scene might have happened first, but I don't remember). I feel really bad about what she said. Then, I turn around and think to myself, "God calls me beautiful" and I told her that I don't believe what she said, and that I am beautiful. I wasn't necessarily thinking about looks when I said that, but the acceptance of myself as being beautiful as God calls me beautiful. Then, later on I am in a dining hall with the young woman. There are round tables that have white table clothes. There is a group of young people in there. We are all eating dinner. Even though I feel stuffed, I still have a couple pieces of bread from the pasta meal. Most everyone is done eating and they just start to leave. I decide to finish eating those last pieces. I feel like a blob doing that, but oh well. Then, after almost everyone is gone and I'm finished eating, we are given an entirely new dish by one of the servers and it's looks like a sort of healthy casserole of some type. It looks green. Now realizing that we have this new meal that is better than the first, the young woman says something about how we all should have waited and then we would have all had this, but most everyone missed out. She said "tisk tisk." So, I felt like I had done something good by staying there for so long afterwards. That's pretty much all that I remember from the dream.
When I woke up from the dream, I felt like maybe the dream is about vanity. Physical looks are vain because they don't last. Outward beauty doesn't last. Youth doesn't last. The only thing that can last is our character, what's in our heart. Instead of focusing so much on our outward looks, we should focus more on our characteristics. I think the turning point in the dream for me is when I realized how vain my face is and that it's my characteristics that truly make me who I am: my strength, positivity, friendliness, faith, frugality and patience. I realized that it's not really my outward beauty that makes me beautiful, but my inward beauty, the very fact that God calls me beautiful is the only true reason that I'm beautiful. It doesn't matter what I say or anyone else says, but what God says. He's the one that really counts in all of this. And I'm also thinking of a few Bible quotes (1 Samuel 16:7, Proverbs 31:30 & Isaiah 53:2): "Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart" & "Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised" & (a prophecy referring to how most people would look at Jesus when He was on earth) "There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him" (and this is Jesus we're talking about, the King of Kings, the most perfect beautiful human being ever; but apparently on the outside he wasn't so impressive to most people of the time).
5/13/2010
A Wife of Noble Character (A Proverbs 31 Woman)
from Proverbs 31:10-31
10 Who can find a virtuous and capable wife?
She is more precious than rubies.
11 Her husband can trust her,
and she will greatly enrich his life.
12 She brings him good, not harm,
all the days of her life.
13 She finds wool and flax
and busily spins it.
14 She is like a merchant’s ship,
bringing her food from afar.
15 She gets up before dawn to prepare breakfast for her household
and plan the day’s work for her servant girls.
16 She goes to inspect a field and buys it;
with her earnings she plants a vineyard.
17 She is energetic and strong,
a hard worker.
18 She makes sure her dealings are profitable;
her lamp burns late into the night.
19 Her hands are busy spinning thread,
her fingers twisting fiber.
20 She extends a helping hand to the poor
and opens her arms to the needy.
21 She has no fear of winter for her household,
for everyone has warm clothes.
22 She makes her own bedspreads.
She dresses in fine linen and purple gowns.
23 Her husband is well known at the city gates,
where he sits with the other civic leaders.
24 She makes belted linen garments
and sashes to sell to the merchants.
25 She is clothed with strength and dignity,
and she laughs without fear of the future.
26 When she speaks, her words are wise,
and she gives instructions with kindness.
27 She carefully watches everything in her household
and suffers nothing from laziness.
28 Her children stand and bless her.
Her husband praises her:
29 “There are many virtuous and capable women in the world,
but you surpass them all!”
30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last;
but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised.
31 Reward her for all she has done.
Let her deeds publicly declare her praise.
10 Who can find a virtuous and capable wife?
She is more precious than rubies.
11 Her husband can trust her,
and she will greatly enrich his life.
12 She brings him good, not harm,
all the days of her life.
13 She finds wool and flax
and busily spins it.
14 She is like a merchant’s ship,
bringing her food from afar.
15 She gets up before dawn to prepare breakfast for her household
and plan the day’s work for her servant girls.
16 She goes to inspect a field and buys it;
with her earnings she plants a vineyard.
17 She is energetic and strong,
a hard worker.
18 She makes sure her dealings are profitable;
her lamp burns late into the night.
19 Her hands are busy spinning thread,
her fingers twisting fiber.
20 She extends a helping hand to the poor
and opens her arms to the needy.
21 She has no fear of winter for her household,
for everyone has warm clothes.
22 She makes her own bedspreads.
She dresses in fine linen and purple gowns.
23 Her husband is well known at the city gates,
where he sits with the other civic leaders.
24 She makes belted linen garments
and sashes to sell to the merchants.
25 She is clothed with strength and dignity,
and she laughs without fear of the future.
26 When she speaks, her words are wise,
and she gives instructions with kindness.
27 She carefully watches everything in her household
and suffers nothing from laziness.
28 Her children stand and bless her.
Her husband praises her:
29 “There are many virtuous and capable women in the world,
but you surpass them all!”
30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last;
but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised.
31 Reward her for all she has done.
Let her deeds publicly declare her praise.
Beyond Belief
Thursday E-mail - May 13, 2010
via Hollywood Connect http://hollywoodconnect.com/
A couple weeks ago, I went on a personal retreat in Palm Springs. I have some good friends who donated their timeshare condo for me to use, which, of course, made them even better friends. I say that tongue-in-cheek, of course. After all, I was in the middle of the desert by myself, and real friends don’t do that to friends, right? I’m kidding. In all fairness, they did offer to come along, but sensing that God had a few things to say to me, I went out alone into the wilderness to pray and listen.
Wandering in the desert for a few days got me thinking about the Israelites, who ended up wandering in the desert for a few years. I know there are a lot of creative artists in the entertainment industry and elsewhere who sometimes get the feeling that they’ve been wandering in a desert for days, weeks, or even years at a time. I’ve been there too.
There are many reasons why a person might end up in the desert, so if you find yourself there, I’ll leave it to God to reveal why that may be. After all, some desert times are God-ordained. Jesus, Paul, David, and other great heroes spent a lot of their formative years out in the wilderness.
Other desert times are not part of God’s preferred agenda, however. The Israelites spent a good, long time wandering in the desert, not so much because of their complaining – which some people mistakenly think was the catalyst – but because of their unbelief. (Heb. 3:19).
Why, after all of Egypt, must there be a desert? The desert is less a punishment, and more a refinement. The fire and the heat give rise to hidden unrighteousness so we can deal with it. In Israel’s case, the desert showed the unbelief that apparently came pretty naturally to them at the time.
Unbelief prevents you from entering into God’s promises for you. In Israel’s case, it kept them from entering the Promised Land. It wasn’t that the Israelites didn’t believe in God or the spiritual world. They did. What they didn’t believe in was God’s character. Their unbelief was directed towards His ability and desire to fulfill His promises. They allowed their immediate circumstances and abilities to dictate their belief, rather than God’s character and the relationship He promised to them.
Oh, there were a couple guys who didn’t fall into that sin of unbelief (and yeah, I’m sorry to say, it is sin). Joshua and Caleb were the only two among all the Israelites who were allowed to enter into God’s promises because they believed that His character, favor, and ability trumped everything else. That was belief in God.
In your artistic life, you may have encountered setbacks and difficult circumstances. As a result, you may have let unbelief to creep into your thinking, maybe without even realizing it. I know, I know – some truly rotten things may have happened to you. But a reason for sin is not the same as an excuse for sin. No, I get it – you still believe in God’s existence. But do you still believe in His character?
Belief is not a tool; it is a position. It is positioning yourself to receive from the Father whatever He wants to give. It is a choice to agree that He exists and to agree with what He says is true about His character and what your relationship is with Him. It is not a tool to get what you want, but a position you place yourself in to receive what He gives. It is openness; it is receptivity.
Belief is a muscle. It becomes stronger, with more stamina, each time you choose to use it. Failure to use it, however, leads to atrophy. So if you find yourself wandering in the desert, check your belief levels. Move beyond belief in your surroundings and your own abilities to belief in the character of God.
All my best,
Shun Lee
Director
Hollywood Connect
© 2010. All rights reserved.
You should also follow us on: Twitter: @Shun_Lee @HwoodConnect
Facebook: Hollywood Connect
via Hollywood Connect http://hollywoodconnect.com/
A couple weeks ago, I went on a personal retreat in Palm Springs. I have some good friends who donated their timeshare condo for me to use, which, of course, made them even better friends. I say that tongue-in-cheek, of course. After all, I was in the middle of the desert by myself, and real friends don’t do that to friends, right? I’m kidding. In all fairness, they did offer to come along, but sensing that God had a few things to say to me, I went out alone into the wilderness to pray and listen.
Wandering in the desert for a few days got me thinking about the Israelites, who ended up wandering in the desert for a few years. I know there are a lot of creative artists in the entertainment industry and elsewhere who sometimes get the feeling that they’ve been wandering in a desert for days, weeks, or even years at a time. I’ve been there too.
There are many reasons why a person might end up in the desert, so if you find yourself there, I’ll leave it to God to reveal why that may be. After all, some desert times are God-ordained. Jesus, Paul, David, and other great heroes spent a lot of their formative years out in the wilderness.
Other desert times are not part of God’s preferred agenda, however. The Israelites spent a good, long time wandering in the desert, not so much because of their complaining – which some people mistakenly think was the catalyst – but because of their unbelief. (Heb. 3:19).
Why, after all of Egypt, must there be a desert? The desert is less a punishment, and more a refinement. The fire and the heat give rise to hidden unrighteousness so we can deal with it. In Israel’s case, the desert showed the unbelief that apparently came pretty naturally to them at the time.
Unbelief prevents you from entering into God’s promises for you. In Israel’s case, it kept them from entering the Promised Land. It wasn’t that the Israelites didn’t believe in God or the spiritual world. They did. What they didn’t believe in was God’s character. Their unbelief was directed towards His ability and desire to fulfill His promises. They allowed their immediate circumstances and abilities to dictate their belief, rather than God’s character and the relationship He promised to them.
Oh, there were a couple guys who didn’t fall into that sin of unbelief (and yeah, I’m sorry to say, it is sin). Joshua and Caleb were the only two among all the Israelites who were allowed to enter into God’s promises because they believed that His character, favor, and ability trumped everything else. That was belief in God.
In your artistic life, you may have encountered setbacks and difficult circumstances. As a result, you may have let unbelief to creep into your thinking, maybe without even realizing it. I know, I know – some truly rotten things may have happened to you. But a reason for sin is not the same as an excuse for sin. No, I get it – you still believe in God’s existence. But do you still believe in His character?
Belief is not a tool; it is a position. It is positioning yourself to receive from the Father whatever He wants to give. It is a choice to agree that He exists and to agree with what He says is true about His character and what your relationship is with Him. It is not a tool to get what you want, but a position you place yourself in to receive what He gives. It is openness; it is receptivity.
Belief is a muscle. It becomes stronger, with more stamina, each time you choose to use it. Failure to use it, however, leads to atrophy. So if you find yourself wandering in the desert, check your belief levels. Move beyond belief in your surroundings and your own abilities to belief in the character of God.
All my best,
Shun Lee
Director
Hollywood Connect
© 2010. All rights reserved.
You should also follow us on: Twitter: @Shun_Lee @HwoodConnect
Facebook: Hollywood Connect
Not "Overly Religious"
from c28.com
Robert came in the store and was looking for a ring. As he was checking out, God told me to ask him if he had ever personally asked Jesus in his heart.
He said he'd gone to church off and on throughout his life and believed in God but wasn't "overly religious". I showed him the "No Religion" sticker and explained the difference between religion and relationship then I went on to explain how sin separates us from God and we need an advocate to go to heaven. I told him what Jesus did was for everyone but we need to receive it.
I gave him an analogy of a man who had fasted but then needed to prepare for a marathon. I said if you need nourishment and I have it in plenty but don't offer it to you and you don't receive it, it won't do you any good. I told him going to church, being a good person, reading the bible, being baptised, etc. doesn't save us and that we need to be born again to go to heaven. I asked if he wanted to pray to receive Christ and he said yes.
Afterward, he talked to me about how he ran marathons. How cool is that? God knew that about him and put it on my heart to use it as an example but I had no idea. I gave him a New Believers bible and walked him through it.
Now Robert is prepared and excited to help his friends and family come to know Jesus!
Robert came in the store and was looking for a ring. As he was checking out, God told me to ask him if he had ever personally asked Jesus in his heart.
He said he'd gone to church off and on throughout his life and believed in God but wasn't "overly religious". I showed him the "No Religion" sticker and explained the difference between religion and relationship then I went on to explain how sin separates us from God and we need an advocate to go to heaven. I told him what Jesus did was for everyone but we need to receive it.
I gave him an analogy of a man who had fasted but then needed to prepare for a marathon. I said if you need nourishment and I have it in plenty but don't offer it to you and you don't receive it, it won't do you any good. I told him going to church, being a good person, reading the bible, being baptised, etc. doesn't save us and that we need to be born again to go to heaven. I asked if he wanted to pray to receive Christ and he said yes.
Afterward, he talked to me about how he ran marathons. How cool is that? God knew that about him and put it on my heart to use it as an example but I had no idea. I gave him a New Believers bible and walked him through it.
Now Robert is prepared and excited to help his friends and family come to know Jesus!
Our Words, Our Actions
When I hear someone say, "Hell yes," I say "Heaven yes." If I hear someone take God's name in vain, I say a blessing to His name. People's words and actions are very important. Sometimes we don't realize how important everything we do is. If all it takes is one sin to separate us from God, then we should be very careful to not want to sin. Of course, we still sin at times and it can be hard. God forgives us always through Jesus. But, it is still something we should be careful and think about our choices, the tons of choices we make every day and how is God seeing me? I don't want to do anything wrong, it hurts me and I feel bad about it. Thank God for Jesus.
Question: "What does the Bible say about karma?"
via: www.gotquestions.org
Answer: Karma is a theological concept found in the Buddhist and Hindu religions. It is the idea that how you live your life will determine the quality of life you will have after reincarnation. If you are unselfish, kind, and holy during this lifetime, you will be rewarded by being reincarnated (reborn into a new earthly body) into a pleasant life. However, if you live a life of selfishness and evil, you will be reincarnated into a less-than-pleasant lifestyle. In other words, you reap in the next life what you sow in this one. Karma is based on the theological belief in reincarnation. The Bible rejects the idea of reincarnation; therefore, it does not support the idea of karma.
Hebrews 9:27 states, “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment…” This Bible verse makes clear two important points which, for Christians, negate the possibility of reincarnation and karma. First, it states that we are “destined to die once,” meaning that humans are only born once and only die once. There is no endless cycle of life and death and rebirth, an idea inherent in the reincarnation theory. Second, it states that after death we face judgment, meaning that there is no second chance, like there is in reincarnation and karma, to live a better life. You get one shot at life and living it according to God’s plan, and that is it.
The Bible talks a lot about reaping and sowing. Job 4:8 says, “As I have observed, those who plow evil and those who sow trouble reap it.” Psalm 126:5 says, “Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.” Luke 12:24 says, “Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!” In each of these instances, as well as all the other references to reaping and sowing, the act of receiving the rewards of your actions takes place in this life, not in some future life. It is a present-day activity, and the references make it clear that the fruit you reap will be commensurate with the actions you have performed. In addition, the sowing you perform in this life will affect your reward or punishment in the afterlife.
This afterlife is not a rebirth or a reincarnation into another body here on earth. It is either eternal suffering in hell (Matthew 25:46) or eternal life in heaven with Jesus, who died so that we might live eternally with Him. This should be the focus of our life on earth. The apostle Paul wrote in Galatians 6:8-9, “The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
Finally, we must always remember that it was Jesus whose death on the cross resulted in the reaping of eternal life for us, and that it is faith in Jesus that gives us this eternal life. Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” Therefore, we see that the concept of reincarnation and karma is incompatible with what the Bible teaches about life, death, and the sowing and reaping of eternal life.
Recommended Resource: Jesus Among Other gods by Ravi Zacharias.
http://www.gotquestions.org/karma.html
Answer: Karma is a theological concept found in the Buddhist and Hindu religions. It is the idea that how you live your life will determine the quality of life you will have after reincarnation. If you are unselfish, kind, and holy during this lifetime, you will be rewarded by being reincarnated (reborn into a new earthly body) into a pleasant life. However, if you live a life of selfishness and evil, you will be reincarnated into a less-than-pleasant lifestyle. In other words, you reap in the next life what you sow in this one. Karma is based on the theological belief in reincarnation. The Bible rejects the idea of reincarnation; therefore, it does not support the idea of karma.
Hebrews 9:27 states, “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment…” This Bible verse makes clear two important points which, for Christians, negate the possibility of reincarnation and karma. First, it states that we are “destined to die once,” meaning that humans are only born once and only die once. There is no endless cycle of life and death and rebirth, an idea inherent in the reincarnation theory. Second, it states that after death we face judgment, meaning that there is no second chance, like there is in reincarnation and karma, to live a better life. You get one shot at life and living it according to God’s plan, and that is it.
The Bible talks a lot about reaping and sowing. Job 4:8 says, “As I have observed, those who plow evil and those who sow trouble reap it.” Psalm 126:5 says, “Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.” Luke 12:24 says, “Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!” In each of these instances, as well as all the other references to reaping and sowing, the act of receiving the rewards of your actions takes place in this life, not in some future life. It is a present-day activity, and the references make it clear that the fruit you reap will be commensurate with the actions you have performed. In addition, the sowing you perform in this life will affect your reward or punishment in the afterlife.
This afterlife is not a rebirth or a reincarnation into another body here on earth. It is either eternal suffering in hell (Matthew 25:46) or eternal life in heaven with Jesus, who died so that we might live eternally with Him. This should be the focus of our life on earth. The apostle Paul wrote in Galatians 6:8-9, “The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
Finally, we must always remember that it was Jesus whose death on the cross resulted in the reaping of eternal life for us, and that it is faith in Jesus that gives us this eternal life. Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” Therefore, we see that the concept of reincarnation and karma is incompatible with what the Bible teaches about life, death, and the sowing and reaping of eternal life.
Recommended Resource: Jesus Among Other gods by Ravi Zacharias.
http://www.gotquestions.org/karma.html
Living Within God's Will
By Charles F. Stanley
Bible Study: The Unreasonable Will Of God
Sermon: The Unreasonable Will Of God
With so many economic and political changes taking place in our world today, people everywhere are asking, “How do I find God’s will for my life?” Businessmen who have relied on their company’s loyalty for decades are suddenly out of work. They wonder how to support their families. College graduates who had planned to enter a career are finding that it’s almost impossible to get work. People are losing their homes. And in the midst of it all, they are losing their sense of direction.
How does a CEO start over again? And how does a single mother find a new home for her family? Why would God let such things happen, and what does He intend for us to do about them?
It’s important to know that the Lord has a plan for each of our lives. And when we operate within the boundaries He sets forth, we soon discover His will for the circumstances we face. Jeremiah 29:11 says that God’s plan includes the future—He sees the big picture when we can’t.
We need to realize that God’s will isn’t something to fear. It’s meant to give us clarity of purpose and power to lead a blessed life. His will provides us with direction at every turn and answers important questions. In an age where even our cars can get real-time, turn-by-turn directions from satellites, it’s hard to understand why some people resist the flawless guidance that comes from our loving, omniscient Father.
God’s will is active in our daily life. What interests us interests Him, no matter how trivial. The Lord wants to work in us, and He will send blessings if we choose to follow Him. It is impossible to get less than the best when we do things His way. But living within God’s boundaries requires something from each of us. We must yield our lives through personal surrender to Jesus Christ. Many people receive Jesus as Savior but avoid making Him Lord over all of life.
Faced with certain death, Jesus prayed, “Not My will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42). The surrender of Christ is our standard. By submitting to God, you wisely give up the responsibility of figuring out your own direction in life. Instead, you decide to live the way He has chosen. Through your willingness to follow, the Father will begin to change your habits and attitudes.
The Lord takes the good and bad of a believer’s life, and weaves it all together to form a beautiful mosaic (Rom. 8:28). Some people can’t imagine how God could possibly bring good out of their situation. But He does, and He wants to do the same for you. Don’t delay—turn to Him now and discover the blessings that come from obedience to the Father.
Bible Study: The Unreasonable Will Of God
Sermon: The Unreasonable Will Of God
With so many economic and political changes taking place in our world today, people everywhere are asking, “How do I find God’s will for my life?” Businessmen who have relied on their company’s loyalty for decades are suddenly out of work. They wonder how to support their families. College graduates who had planned to enter a career are finding that it’s almost impossible to get work. People are losing their homes. And in the midst of it all, they are losing their sense of direction.
How does a CEO start over again? And how does a single mother find a new home for her family? Why would God let such things happen, and what does He intend for us to do about them?
It’s important to know that the Lord has a plan for each of our lives. And when we operate within the boundaries He sets forth, we soon discover His will for the circumstances we face. Jeremiah 29:11 says that God’s plan includes the future—He sees the big picture when we can’t.
We need to realize that God’s will isn’t something to fear. It’s meant to give us clarity of purpose and power to lead a blessed life. His will provides us with direction at every turn and answers important questions. In an age where even our cars can get real-time, turn-by-turn directions from satellites, it’s hard to understand why some people resist the flawless guidance that comes from our loving, omniscient Father.
God’s will is active in our daily life. What interests us interests Him, no matter how trivial. The Lord wants to work in us, and He will send blessings if we choose to follow Him. It is impossible to get less than the best when we do things His way. But living within God’s boundaries requires something from each of us. We must yield our lives through personal surrender to Jesus Christ. Many people receive Jesus as Savior but avoid making Him Lord over all of life.
Faced with certain death, Jesus prayed, “Not My will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42). The surrender of Christ is our standard. By submitting to God, you wisely give up the responsibility of figuring out your own direction in life. Instead, you decide to live the way He has chosen. Through your willingness to follow, the Father will begin to change your habits and attitudes.
The Lord takes the good and bad of a believer’s life, and weaves it all together to form a beautiful mosaic (Rom. 8:28). Some people can’t imagine how God could possibly bring good out of their situation. But He does, and He wants to do the same for you. Don’t delay—turn to Him now and discover the blessings that come from obedience to the Father.
The Eyes Have It
Hollywood Connect, Thursday E-mail - May 6, 2010
http://hollywoodconnect.com/
I recently watched a wonderful film that a few friends had a hand in bringing to the silver screen. The film was well-executed, and the story was well-told, and movies with both of those elements have become way too uncommon. The premise and the plot of this particular film were so good, in fact, it all made me a bit envious. I walked out of the theater smacking myself on the forehead and wondering, Wow, why didn’t I think of that idea?
Sometimes we miss the best creative ideas, even the ones that are sitting right in front of us, waiting to be discovered, because we don’t have the eyes to see them for what they are. I suppose that is what artistic vision is all about, isn’t it? It’s the ability to see an idea with the eyes of perception and recognition.
One of my favorite passages in the Bible, and one which I think is particularly insightful for us as artists, is Isaiah 43:18-21, and especially verse 19, in which God speaks to His people:
See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.
This declaration says a couple of things to me. First, God is still creating, and He is still doing new things. He didn’t just stop being creative after six days of massive inspiration. He never gets stuck in a creative formula or rut, creating in one particular way just because that is the way it has always been done. He persists in His creative endeavors today.
Second, implicit in that verse is the warning that if we’re not careful, we run the risk of not seeing and perceiving the creative things that God is doing. That is a pretty somber thought that should keep us artists on our toes, since the source of true creative inspiration starts first and foremost in and because of Him. Take note: God is the Prime Mover of creative inspiration. It starts with and flows from Him, and we want to make sure that we maintain the perception to recognize it when it springs up in front of us.
As artists, we can often find ourselves in a creative wasteland, those times when the ideas are not flowing as readily as we would like or need. But the ideas are still there; we just need the eyes to see them.
When I find myself in creative deserts like that, I take great heart in the fact that God makes streams in the wasteland. Of particular value is Jeremiah 33:3, one of the greatest promises found in the Bible for us as artists and as people:
Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things which you do not know.
This is a pretty amazing promise that we don’t tap into often enough. It is an invitation to join God in His wonderful creativity. If we will take the time and effort to call on God, He will open our eyes to the new things He is doing.
Feeling like you’ve lost your creative vision somewhere in the artistic desert? Wondering if your ability to see and recognize those new ideas is forever gone? God’s promise is that He will open your eyes… if you’ll just call on Him.
All my best,
Shun Lee
Director
Hollywood Connect
http://hollywoodconnect.com/
I recently watched a wonderful film that a few friends had a hand in bringing to the silver screen. The film was well-executed, and the story was well-told, and movies with both of those elements have become way too uncommon. The premise and the plot of this particular film were so good, in fact, it all made me a bit envious. I walked out of the theater smacking myself on the forehead and wondering, Wow, why didn’t I think of that idea?
Sometimes we miss the best creative ideas, even the ones that are sitting right in front of us, waiting to be discovered, because we don’t have the eyes to see them for what they are. I suppose that is what artistic vision is all about, isn’t it? It’s the ability to see an idea with the eyes of perception and recognition.
One of my favorite passages in the Bible, and one which I think is particularly insightful for us as artists, is Isaiah 43:18-21, and especially verse 19, in which God speaks to His people:
See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.
This declaration says a couple of things to me. First, God is still creating, and He is still doing new things. He didn’t just stop being creative after six days of massive inspiration. He never gets stuck in a creative formula or rut, creating in one particular way just because that is the way it has always been done. He persists in His creative endeavors today.
Second, implicit in that verse is the warning that if we’re not careful, we run the risk of not seeing and perceiving the creative things that God is doing. That is a pretty somber thought that should keep us artists on our toes, since the source of true creative inspiration starts first and foremost in and because of Him. Take note: God is the Prime Mover of creative inspiration. It starts with and flows from Him, and we want to make sure that we maintain the perception to recognize it when it springs up in front of us.
As artists, we can often find ourselves in a creative wasteland, those times when the ideas are not flowing as readily as we would like or need. But the ideas are still there; we just need the eyes to see them.
When I find myself in creative deserts like that, I take great heart in the fact that God makes streams in the wasteland. Of particular value is Jeremiah 33:3, one of the greatest promises found in the Bible for us as artists and as people:
Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things which you do not know.
This is a pretty amazing promise that we don’t tap into often enough. It is an invitation to join God in His wonderful creativity. If we will take the time and effort to call on God, He will open our eyes to the new things He is doing.
Feeling like you’ve lost your creative vision somewhere in the artistic desert? Wondering if your ability to see and recognize those new ideas is forever gone? God’s promise is that He will open your eyes… if you’ll just call on Him.
All my best,
Shun Lee
Director
Hollywood Connect
The Daily Word
"As we follow Christ, we cannot hear one message or read the Bible once in a while and then think that's enough to stay encouraged. We need to fill our hearts daily with the instruction, correction and hope found only in God's Word."
This is true. Even if you don't read the Bible everyday (I currently don't, but I get at least a Bible quote in everyday); just getting some of the word in through maybe reading a quote, or an article or through spending time in prayer to God, meditation of something you've learnt from the Bible or your Christian walk. There is always a need to get a daily nourishment with God. If you don't, then day by day you will start to slack off and it will hurt. I know from experience that if you go by without something then it just feels like something very important is missing; and what really could be mean important than putting God in our lives day-to-day when He is our Lord and Savior? We literally need Him.
This is true. Even if you don't read the Bible everyday (I currently don't, but I get at least a Bible quote in everyday); just getting some of the word in through maybe reading a quote, or an article or through spending time in prayer to God, meditation of something you've learnt from the Bible or your Christian walk. There is always a need to get a daily nourishment with God. If you don't, then day by day you will start to slack off and it will hurt. I know from experience that if you go by without something then it just feels like something very important is missing; and what really could be mean important than putting God in our lives day-to-day when He is our Lord and Savior? We literally need Him.
New Abortion Laws Slowing Baby Killers
New Abortion Laws Slowing Baby Killers
by Chick Publications www.chick.com
Those fighting for the lives of our unborn children are developing new strategies. A new law in Oklahoma has the abortionists running for their lawyers. Modern technology has opened a window in the womb so we can watch the little person suck his thumb and cringe from danger.
The law requires that every woman who requests an abortion be offered a view of her baby on an ultrasound screen and be given a detailed description of it. Abortion clinics are reporting that mothers dissolved into tears during the ultrasound. Others refused to look at the baby on the screen.
Ever since the U.S. Supreme Court legalized the sin of killing babies, pro-aborts have pounded the propaganda drum not to worry about the “fetus,” that was “just a blob of tissue!” And, why allow the inconvenience of a pregnancy, and the 20-year project of raising a child, disrupt your life. After all, sex is for recreation and should be available to everyone without consequences, right?
Some of abortion clinic staffers are having second thoughts. Abby Johnson, director of a Planned Parenthood clinic in Texas, quit her job after watching an unborn baby “crumple” as it was being vacuumed out of the womb. She had joined Planned Parenthood to help mothers in trouble but became disillusioned with the organization’s emphasis on profit rather than helping people to plan their “parenthood.”
The new ultrasound machines also delivered images of babies scrambling to escape the cutting and vacuuming instruments used during an abortion. The child was obviously feeling pain during the procedure. Based on these images, laws have been passed limiting abortion after a certain stage of growth.
Another procedure is called “partial birth abortion.” Here the baby is delivered all but the head. Then the back of the skull is punctured and the brain sucked out with a vacuum. Because the baby was not fully delivered, it was not legally a live birth. When graphic descriptions of this procedure were made public, laws against it were much easier to pass.
As usual, the pro-aborts are claiming that the Oklahoma law is unfair to victims of incest and rape. They are quick to use this to justify all abortions. However, reliable studies indicate that less than one percent of all abortions are requested because of these two factors. Most of the abortions are for convenience.
All of these strategies are taking their toll. Abortions are down 25 percent in the U.S. from 20 years ago. However, the President was right on one thing, we need to reduce the need. Unplanned pregnancies are the problem. Abortion is just one of the “solutions.” Making abortion illegal will not address the root problem. The real solution is to change the hearts of the ones who generate the “unplanned” pregnancies.
Bible believers have the only answer: hearts changed by the Holy Spirit and sheltered by the safety of obedience to God’s laws. All Chick tracts and literature focus on the need for the redemption and regeneration of the human heart. This is central to the solution to abortion and all other problems caused by sinful behavior.
Besides the general salvation tracts such as This Was Your Life, Love Story, and Somebody Goofed, we have tried to target the horrors of abortion with Who Murdered Clarice? and the risks of the party scene with Party Girl. The “unintended consequences” of sex outside of marriage is illustrated by the story of David and Bathsheba in The Royal Affair.
These tracts seeded into a community will cause people to stop and think about God’s remedy for unplanned pregnancies. Beside saving a soul, you might also save a few babies in the process.
Tract: Who murdered Clarice?
http://www.chick.com
http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/1009/1009_01.asp
by Chick Publications www.chick.com
Those fighting for the lives of our unborn children are developing new strategies. A new law in Oklahoma has the abortionists running for their lawyers. Modern technology has opened a window in the womb so we can watch the little person suck his thumb and cringe from danger.
The law requires that every woman who requests an abortion be offered a view of her baby on an ultrasound screen and be given a detailed description of it. Abortion clinics are reporting that mothers dissolved into tears during the ultrasound. Others refused to look at the baby on the screen.
Ever since the U.S. Supreme Court legalized the sin of killing babies, pro-aborts have pounded the propaganda drum not to worry about the “fetus,” that was “just a blob of tissue!” And, why allow the inconvenience of a pregnancy, and the 20-year project of raising a child, disrupt your life. After all, sex is for recreation and should be available to everyone without consequences, right?
Some of abortion clinic staffers are having second thoughts. Abby Johnson, director of a Planned Parenthood clinic in Texas, quit her job after watching an unborn baby “crumple” as it was being vacuumed out of the womb. She had joined Planned Parenthood to help mothers in trouble but became disillusioned with the organization’s emphasis on profit rather than helping people to plan their “parenthood.”
The new ultrasound machines also delivered images of babies scrambling to escape the cutting and vacuuming instruments used during an abortion. The child was obviously feeling pain during the procedure. Based on these images, laws have been passed limiting abortion after a certain stage of growth.
Another procedure is called “partial birth abortion.” Here the baby is delivered all but the head. Then the back of the skull is punctured and the brain sucked out with a vacuum. Because the baby was not fully delivered, it was not legally a live birth. When graphic descriptions of this procedure were made public, laws against it were much easier to pass.
As usual, the pro-aborts are claiming that the Oklahoma law is unfair to victims of incest and rape. They are quick to use this to justify all abortions. However, reliable studies indicate that less than one percent of all abortions are requested because of these two factors. Most of the abortions are for convenience.
All of these strategies are taking their toll. Abortions are down 25 percent in the U.S. from 20 years ago. However, the President was right on one thing, we need to reduce the need. Unplanned pregnancies are the problem. Abortion is just one of the “solutions.” Making abortion illegal will not address the root problem. The real solution is to change the hearts of the ones who generate the “unplanned” pregnancies.
Bible believers have the only answer: hearts changed by the Holy Spirit and sheltered by the safety of obedience to God’s laws. All Chick tracts and literature focus on the need for the redemption and regeneration of the human heart. This is central to the solution to abortion and all other problems caused by sinful behavior.
Besides the general salvation tracts such as This Was Your Life, Love Story, and Somebody Goofed, we have tried to target the horrors of abortion with Who Murdered Clarice? and the risks of the party scene with Party Girl. The “unintended consequences” of sex outside of marriage is illustrated by the story of David and Bathsheba in The Royal Affair.
These tracts seeded into a community will cause people to stop and think about God’s remedy for unplanned pregnancies. Beside saving a soul, you might also save a few babies in the process.
Tract: Who murdered Clarice?
http://www.chick.com
http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/1009/1009_01.asp
Ladyfingers - A Tribute To Lady Saints
A tribute to lady saints to the tune of "Ladyfingers" by Luscious Jackson.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohq3gB6GHWM
5/11/2010
No Need To Fear Death When You're In God's Hands
"My religious beliefs teach me to feel as safe in battle as in bed. God has fixed the time of my death. I do not concern myself with that, but to be always ready whenever it may overtake me. That is the way all men should live, and all men would be equally brave."
~ General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson
I received a heart-breaking phone call at Los Angeles airport while I was entering the security area. It was the daughter of my 95 year old friend, Ted Bennett. Ted has been preaching for 80 years and his mind is still as sharp as a tack. He was rushed to the hospital and given only 2 hours to live. I could do nothing but pray because I was about to board a plane to Wichita. He couldn't talk, but he could listen as I spoke to him over the phone. To my joy, I returned to visit him two days later in ICU. I brought my wife and children from school to say goodbye as Tedd lay there with tubes and wires entering and exiting his frail body. We prayed, read scripture, and even joked with one another before we said our farewells. Two days later, I got another call that the miraculous had happened. Tedd had recovered, was no longer in ICU, and could talk freely without the respirator in his mouth! I rushed to see my friend and ask him what he was thinking as he lay so close to the edge of eternity. He said to me, "Kirk, If the Lord has more for me to do here, then so be it, but if it is time to go, then I'm ready." He then quoted Charles Spurgeon (as he so often does) and reminded us both that "Not a single shaft can hit, till the God of love sees fit." Ted is a man doing battle in bed, knowing that his time on earth may be very short. Never have I seen someone so brave as my friend Ted, waring against fear and a broken body at death's door, trusting in the faithfulness of his Savior.
~ Kirk Cameron
~ General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson
I received a heart-breaking phone call at Los Angeles airport while I was entering the security area. It was the daughter of my 95 year old friend, Ted Bennett. Ted has been preaching for 80 years and his mind is still as sharp as a tack. He was rushed to the hospital and given only 2 hours to live. I could do nothing but pray because I was about to board a plane to Wichita. He couldn't talk, but he could listen as I spoke to him over the phone. To my joy, I returned to visit him two days later in ICU. I brought my wife and children from school to say goodbye as Tedd lay there with tubes and wires entering and exiting his frail body. We prayed, read scripture, and even joked with one another before we said our farewells. Two days later, I got another call that the miraculous had happened. Tedd had recovered, was no longer in ICU, and could talk freely without the respirator in his mouth! I rushed to see my friend and ask him what he was thinking as he lay so close to the edge of eternity. He said to me, "Kirk, If the Lord has more for me to do here, then so be it, but if it is time to go, then I'm ready." He then quoted Charles Spurgeon (as he so often does) and reminded us both that "Not a single shaft can hit, till the God of love sees fit." Ted is a man doing battle in bed, knowing that his time on earth may be very short. Never have I seen someone so brave as my friend Ted, waring against fear and a broken body at death's door, trusting in the faithfulness of his Savior.
~ Kirk Cameron
5/10/2010
With God All Things Are Possible
Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." (Matthew 19:26)
God is above all and there is nothing that He can't handle. He loves u deeply. If it is His will, He will do what u consider to be the impossible. He can still do miracles. Sometimes big ones, sometimes subtle ones. He can rescue us when we don't think it can happen, whatever it may be ourselves, relationships, communities, etc. Don't give up on Him, He's never given up on you. U r His child and He calls u blessed and chosen. He looks after you and guides you in life. He picks u up when ur down and guides u the way you should go. Whatever life brings you, whatever choices you make, He still holds u in the palm of His hand. Give it up to God. His will be done. I bless and praise His Holy Name. Amen.
God is above all and there is nothing that He can't handle. He loves u deeply. If it is His will, He will do what u consider to be the impossible. He can still do miracles. Sometimes big ones, sometimes subtle ones. He can rescue us when we don't think it can happen, whatever it may be ourselves, relationships, communities, etc. Don't give up on Him, He's never given up on you. U r His child and He calls u blessed and chosen. He looks after you and guides you in life. He picks u up when ur down and guides u the way you should go. Whatever life brings you, whatever choices you make, He still holds u in the palm of His hand. Give it up to God. His will be done. I bless and praise His Holy Name. Amen.
5/05/2010
if being perfect is what saves us then none of us would be saved; "for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God" (romans 3:23); "for it is by grace that you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it's the gift of God, not of works, so that no one can boast" (ephesians 2:8-9)
Kari Jobe - The More I Seek You
the more i seek you, the more i find you, the more i find you, the more i love you
The Holy Spirit, a Comforter
The Holy Spirit a Comforter
by Charles Spurgeon
God the Holy Ghost is a very loving Comforter. I am in distress, and want consolation. Some passer-by hears of my sorrow, and he steps within, sits down and essays to cheer me; he speaks soothing words; but he loves me not, he is a stranger, he knows me not at all, he has only come in to try his skill; and what is the consequence? His words run o'er me like oil upon a slab of marble—they are like the pattering rain upon the rock; they do not break my grief; it stands unmoved as adamant, because he has no love for me. But let someone who loves me dearly as his own life come and plead with me, then truly his words are music; they taste like honey; he knows the password of the doors of my heart, and my ear is attentive to every word; I catch the intonation of each syllable as it falls, for it is like the harmony of the harps of heaven. Oh, there is a voice in love, it speaks a language which is its own, it is an idiom and an accent which none can mimic; wisdom cannot imitate it; oratory cannot attain unto it; it is love alone which can reach the mourning heart; love is the only handkerchief which can wipe the mourner's tears away. And is not the Holy Ghost a loving Comforter? Dost thou know, O saint, how much the Holy Spirit loves thee? Canst thou measure the love of the Spirit? Dost thou know how great is the affection of His soul towards thee? Go, measure heaven with thy span; go, weigh the mountians in the scales; go, take the ocean's water, and tell each drop; go, count the sand upon the seals wide shore; and when thou hast accomplished this, thou canst tell how much He loveth thee. He has loved thee long; He has loved thee well; He loved thee ever; and He still shall love thee. Surely He is the person to comfort thee, because He loves. Admit Him, then, to your heart, O Christian that He may comfort you in your distress.
He is a faithful Comforter. Love sometimes proveth unfaithful. "Oh, sharper than a serpent's tooth" is an unfaithful friend! Oh, far more bitter than the gall of bitterness, to have a friend to turn from me in my distress! Oh, woe of woes, to have one who loves me in my prosperity forsake me in the dark day of my trouble! Sad indeed: but such is not God's Spirit. He ever loves, and loves even to the end—a faithful Comforter. Child of God, you are in trouble! A little while ago you found Him a sweet and loving Comforter; you obtained relief from Him when others were but broken cisterns; He sheltered you in His bosom, and carried you in His arms. Oh, wherefore dost thou distrust Him now? Away with thy fears; for He is a faithful Comforter. "Ah! but," thou sayest, "I fear I shall be sick, and shall be deprived of His ordinances." Nevertheless, He shall visit thee on they sick bed, and sit by thy side to give thee consolation. "Ah! but I have distresses greater than
You can conceive of; wave upon wave rolleth over me; deep calleth unto deep at the noise of the Eternal's waterspouts." Nevertheless, He will be faithful to His promise. "Ah! but I have sinned." So thou hast, but sin cannot sever thee from His love; He loves thee still. Think not, O poor downcast child of God, because the scars of thine old sins have marred thy beauty, that He loves thee less because of that blemish. Oh, no! He loved thee when He foreknew thy sin; He loved thee with the knowledge of what the aggregate of thy wickedness would be; and He does not love thee less now. Come to Him in all boldness of faith; tell Him thou hast grieved Him, and He will forget thy wandering, and will receive thee again; the kisses of His love shall be bestowed upon thee, and the arms of His grace shall embrace thee. He is faithful: trust Him ; He will never deceive you; trust Him, He will never leave you.
He is an unwearied Comforter. I have sometimes tried to comfort persons that have been tried. You now and then meet with the case of a nervous person. You ask, "What is your trouble?" You are told, and you essay, if possible, to remove it, but while you are preparing your artillery to batter the trouble, you find that it has shifted its quarters, and is occupying quite a different position. You change your argument and begin again; but lo, it is again gone, and you are bewildered. You feel like Hercules cutting off the ever-growing heads of the Hydra, and you give up your task in despair. You meet with persons whom it is impossible to comfort, reminding one of the man who locked himself up in fetters and threw the key away, so that nobody could unlock him. I have found some in the fetters of despair. "O, I am the man," say they "that has seen affliction; pity me, pity me, O my friends;" and the more you try to comfort such people, the worse they get; and therefore, out of all heart, we leave them to wander alone among the tombs of their former joys. But the Holy Spirit is never out of heart with those whom He wishes to comfort. He attempts to comfort us, and we run away from the sweet cordial; He gives some sweet draught to cure us, and we will not drink it; He gives some wondrous portion to charm away all our troubles, and we put it away from us. Still He pursues us; and though we say that we will not be comforted, He says we shall be, and when He has said, He does it; He is not to be wearied by all our sins, not by all our murmurings.
And oh, how wise a Comforter is the Holy Ghost! Job had comforters, and I think he spoke the truth when he said, "Miserable comforters are ye all." But I dare say they esteemed themselves wise; and when the young man Elihu rose to speak, they thought he had a world of impudence. Were they not "grave and reverend seniors?" Did not they comprehend his grief and sorrow? If they could not comfort him, who could? But they did not find out the cause. They thought he was not really a child of God, that he was self-righteous: and they gave him the wrong physic. It is a bad case when the doctor mistakes the disease and gives a wrong prescription, and so, perhaps, kills the patient. Sometimes, when we go and visit people we mistake their disease, we want to comfort them on this point, whereas they do not require any such comfort at all, and they would be better left alone than spoiled by such unwise comforters as we are. But oh, how wise the Holy Spirit is! He takes the soul, lays it on the table, and dissects it in a moment; He finds out the root of the matter, He sees where the complaint is, and then He applies the knife where something is required to be taken away, or puts a plaster where the sore is; and He never mistakes. Oh, how wise, the blessed Holy Ghost! From every comforter I turn and leave them all, for thou art He who alone givest the wisest consolation.
Then mark how safe a Comforter the Holy Ghost is. All comfort is not safe; mark that. There is a young man over there very melancholy. You know how he became so. He stepped into the house of God and heard a powerful preacher, and the Word was blessed, and convinced him of sin. When he went home, his father and the rest found there was something different about him, "Oh," they said, "John is mad; he is crazy;" and what said his mother? Send him into the country for a week; let him go to the ball or to the theatre." John, did you find any comfort there? "Ah no; they made me worse, for while I was there, I thought hell might open and swallow me up." Did you find any relief in the gaieties of the world? "No," say you, "I thought it was idle waste of time." Alas! this is miserable comfort, but it is the comfort of the worldling; and when a Christian gets into distress, how many will recommend him this remedy and the other! "Go and hear Mr. So-and-so preach; have a few friends at your house; read such-and-such a consoling volume;" and very likely it is the most unsafe advice in the world. The devil will sometimes come to men's souls as a false comforter, and he will say to the soul, "What need is there to make all this ado about repentance? You are no worse than other people;" and he will try to make the soul believe that what is presumption is the real assurance of the Holy Ghost; thus he deceives many by false comfort. Ah! there have been many, like infants, destroyed by elixirs given to lull them to sleep; many have been ruined by the cry of "Peace, peace," when there is no peace, hearing gentle things when they ought to be stirred to the quick. Cleopatrals asp was brought in a basket of flowers; and men's ruin often lurks in fair and sweet speeches. But the Holy Ghost's comfort is safe, and you may rest on it. Let Him speak the word, and there is a reality about it; let Him give the cup of consolation, and you may drink it to the bottom, for in its depths there are no dregs, nothing to intoxicate or ruin, it is all safe.
Moreover, the Holy Ghost is an active Comforter: He does not comfort by words, but by deeds. Some comfort by "Be ye warmed and be ye filled, giving nothing." But the Holy Ghost gives, He intercedes with Jesus; He gives us promises, He gives us grace, and so He comforts us. He is always a successful Comforter; He never attempts what He cannot accomplish. Then He is an ever-present Comforter, so that you never have to send for Him. Your God is always near you, and when you need comfort in your distress, behold, the Word is nigh thee, it is in thy mouth, and in thy heart; He is an ever-present help in time of trouble.
Taken from Words of Cheer for Daily Life
by Charles Spurgeon
God the Holy Ghost is a very loving Comforter. I am in distress, and want consolation. Some passer-by hears of my sorrow, and he steps within, sits down and essays to cheer me; he speaks soothing words; but he loves me not, he is a stranger, he knows me not at all, he has only come in to try his skill; and what is the consequence? His words run o'er me like oil upon a slab of marble—they are like the pattering rain upon the rock; they do not break my grief; it stands unmoved as adamant, because he has no love for me. But let someone who loves me dearly as his own life come and plead with me, then truly his words are music; they taste like honey; he knows the password of the doors of my heart, and my ear is attentive to every word; I catch the intonation of each syllable as it falls, for it is like the harmony of the harps of heaven. Oh, there is a voice in love, it speaks a language which is its own, it is an idiom and an accent which none can mimic; wisdom cannot imitate it; oratory cannot attain unto it; it is love alone which can reach the mourning heart; love is the only handkerchief which can wipe the mourner's tears away. And is not the Holy Ghost a loving Comforter? Dost thou know, O saint, how much the Holy Spirit loves thee? Canst thou measure the love of the Spirit? Dost thou know how great is the affection of His soul towards thee? Go, measure heaven with thy span; go, weigh the mountians in the scales; go, take the ocean's water, and tell each drop; go, count the sand upon the seals wide shore; and when thou hast accomplished this, thou canst tell how much He loveth thee. He has loved thee long; He has loved thee well; He loved thee ever; and He still shall love thee. Surely He is the person to comfort thee, because He loves. Admit Him, then, to your heart, O Christian that He may comfort you in your distress.
He is a faithful Comforter. Love sometimes proveth unfaithful. "Oh, sharper than a serpent's tooth" is an unfaithful friend! Oh, far more bitter than the gall of bitterness, to have a friend to turn from me in my distress! Oh, woe of woes, to have one who loves me in my prosperity forsake me in the dark day of my trouble! Sad indeed: but such is not God's Spirit. He ever loves, and loves even to the end—a faithful Comforter. Child of God, you are in trouble! A little while ago you found Him a sweet and loving Comforter; you obtained relief from Him when others were but broken cisterns; He sheltered you in His bosom, and carried you in His arms. Oh, wherefore dost thou distrust Him now? Away with thy fears; for He is a faithful Comforter. "Ah! but," thou sayest, "I fear I shall be sick, and shall be deprived of His ordinances." Nevertheless, He shall visit thee on they sick bed, and sit by thy side to give thee consolation. "Ah! but I have distresses greater than
You can conceive of; wave upon wave rolleth over me; deep calleth unto deep at the noise of the Eternal's waterspouts." Nevertheless, He will be faithful to His promise. "Ah! but I have sinned." So thou hast, but sin cannot sever thee from His love; He loves thee still. Think not, O poor downcast child of God, because the scars of thine old sins have marred thy beauty, that He loves thee less because of that blemish. Oh, no! He loved thee when He foreknew thy sin; He loved thee with the knowledge of what the aggregate of thy wickedness would be; and He does not love thee less now. Come to Him in all boldness of faith; tell Him thou hast grieved Him, and He will forget thy wandering, and will receive thee again; the kisses of His love shall be bestowed upon thee, and the arms of His grace shall embrace thee. He is faithful: trust Him ; He will never deceive you; trust Him, He will never leave you.
He is an unwearied Comforter. I have sometimes tried to comfort persons that have been tried. You now and then meet with the case of a nervous person. You ask, "What is your trouble?" You are told, and you essay, if possible, to remove it, but while you are preparing your artillery to batter the trouble, you find that it has shifted its quarters, and is occupying quite a different position. You change your argument and begin again; but lo, it is again gone, and you are bewildered. You feel like Hercules cutting off the ever-growing heads of the Hydra, and you give up your task in despair. You meet with persons whom it is impossible to comfort, reminding one of the man who locked himself up in fetters and threw the key away, so that nobody could unlock him. I have found some in the fetters of despair. "O, I am the man," say they "that has seen affliction; pity me, pity me, O my friends;" and the more you try to comfort such people, the worse they get; and therefore, out of all heart, we leave them to wander alone among the tombs of their former joys. But the Holy Spirit is never out of heart with those whom He wishes to comfort. He attempts to comfort us, and we run away from the sweet cordial; He gives some sweet draught to cure us, and we will not drink it; He gives some wondrous portion to charm away all our troubles, and we put it away from us. Still He pursues us; and though we say that we will not be comforted, He says we shall be, and when He has said, He does it; He is not to be wearied by all our sins, not by all our murmurings.
And oh, how wise a Comforter is the Holy Ghost! Job had comforters, and I think he spoke the truth when he said, "Miserable comforters are ye all." But I dare say they esteemed themselves wise; and when the young man Elihu rose to speak, they thought he had a world of impudence. Were they not "grave and reverend seniors?" Did not they comprehend his grief and sorrow? If they could not comfort him, who could? But they did not find out the cause. They thought he was not really a child of God, that he was self-righteous: and they gave him the wrong physic. It is a bad case when the doctor mistakes the disease and gives a wrong prescription, and so, perhaps, kills the patient. Sometimes, when we go and visit people we mistake their disease, we want to comfort them on this point, whereas they do not require any such comfort at all, and they would be better left alone than spoiled by such unwise comforters as we are. But oh, how wise the Holy Spirit is! He takes the soul, lays it on the table, and dissects it in a moment; He finds out the root of the matter, He sees where the complaint is, and then He applies the knife where something is required to be taken away, or puts a plaster where the sore is; and He never mistakes. Oh, how wise, the blessed Holy Ghost! From every comforter I turn and leave them all, for thou art He who alone givest the wisest consolation.
Then mark how safe a Comforter the Holy Ghost is. All comfort is not safe; mark that. There is a young man over there very melancholy. You know how he became so. He stepped into the house of God and heard a powerful preacher, and the Word was blessed, and convinced him of sin. When he went home, his father and the rest found there was something different about him, "Oh," they said, "John is mad; he is crazy;" and what said his mother? Send him into the country for a week; let him go to the ball or to the theatre." John, did you find any comfort there? "Ah no; they made me worse, for while I was there, I thought hell might open and swallow me up." Did you find any relief in the gaieties of the world? "No," say you, "I thought it was idle waste of time." Alas! this is miserable comfort, but it is the comfort of the worldling; and when a Christian gets into distress, how many will recommend him this remedy and the other! "Go and hear Mr. So-and-so preach; have a few friends at your house; read such-and-such a consoling volume;" and very likely it is the most unsafe advice in the world. The devil will sometimes come to men's souls as a false comforter, and he will say to the soul, "What need is there to make all this ado about repentance? You are no worse than other people;" and he will try to make the soul believe that what is presumption is the real assurance of the Holy Ghost; thus he deceives many by false comfort. Ah! there have been many, like infants, destroyed by elixirs given to lull them to sleep; many have been ruined by the cry of "Peace, peace," when there is no peace, hearing gentle things when they ought to be stirred to the quick. Cleopatrals asp was brought in a basket of flowers; and men's ruin often lurks in fair and sweet speeches. But the Holy Ghost's comfort is safe, and you may rest on it. Let Him speak the word, and there is a reality about it; let Him give the cup of consolation, and you may drink it to the bottom, for in its depths there are no dregs, nothing to intoxicate or ruin, it is all safe.
Moreover, the Holy Ghost is an active Comforter: He does not comfort by words, but by deeds. Some comfort by "Be ye warmed and be ye filled, giving nothing." But the Holy Ghost gives, He intercedes with Jesus; He gives us promises, He gives us grace, and so He comforts us. He is always a successful Comforter; He never attempts what He cannot accomplish. Then He is an ever-present Comforter, so that you never have to send for Him. Your God is always near you, and when you need comfort in your distress, behold, the Word is nigh thee, it is in thy mouth, and in thy heart; He is an ever-present help in time of trouble.
Taken from Words of Cheer for Daily Life
Comfort
(from Streams In The Desert, January 11th)
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. (Isaiah 40:1)
Store up comfort. This was the prophet Isaiah's mission. The world is full of hurting and comfortless hearts. But before you will be competent for this lofty ministry, you must be trained. And your training is extremely costly, for to make it complete, you too must endure the same afflictions that are wringing countless hearts of tears and blood. Consequently, your own life becomes the hospital ward where you are taught the divine art of comfort. You will be wounded so that in the binding up of your wounds by the Great Physician, you may learn how to render first aid to the wounded everywhere. Do you wonder why you are having to experience some great sorrow? Over the next ten years you will find many others afflicted in the same way. You will tell them how you suffered and were comforted. As the story unfolds, God will apply the anesthetic He once used on you to them. Then in the eager look followed by the gleam of hope that chases the shadow of despair from the soul, you will know why you were afflicted. And you will bless God for the discipline that filled your life with such a treasure of experience and helpfulness. selected
God comforts us not to make us comfortable but to make us comforters. John Henry Jowett
They tell me I must bruise
The rose's leaf,
Ere I can keep and use
Its fragrance brief.
They tell me I must break
The skylark's heart,
Ere her cage song will make
The silence start.
They tell me love must bleed,
And friendship weep,
Ere in my deepest need
I touch that deep.
Must it be always so
With precioius things?
Must they be bruised and go
With beaten wings?
Ah, yes! by crushing days,
By caging nights, by scar
Of thorn and stony ways,
These blessings are!
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. (Isaiah 40:1)
Store up comfort. This was the prophet Isaiah's mission. The world is full of hurting and comfortless hearts. But before you will be competent for this lofty ministry, you must be trained. And your training is extremely costly, for to make it complete, you too must endure the same afflictions that are wringing countless hearts of tears and blood. Consequently, your own life becomes the hospital ward where you are taught the divine art of comfort. You will be wounded so that in the binding up of your wounds by the Great Physician, you may learn how to render first aid to the wounded everywhere. Do you wonder why you are having to experience some great sorrow? Over the next ten years you will find many others afflicted in the same way. You will tell them how you suffered and were comforted. As the story unfolds, God will apply the anesthetic He once used on you to them. Then in the eager look followed by the gleam of hope that chases the shadow of despair from the soul, you will know why you were afflicted. And you will bless God for the discipline that filled your life with such a treasure of experience and helpfulness. selected
God comforts us not to make us comfortable but to make us comforters. John Henry Jowett
They tell me I must bruise
The rose's leaf,
Ere I can keep and use
Its fragrance brief.
They tell me I must break
The skylark's heart,
Ere her cage song will make
The silence start.
They tell me love must bleed,
And friendship weep,
Ere in my deepest need
I touch that deep.
Must it be always so
With precioius things?
Must they be bruised and go
With beaten wings?
Ah, yes! by crushing days,
By caging nights, by scar
Of thorn and stony ways,
These blessings are!
Casting Crowns - East To West
Jesus, can You show me just how far the east is from the west 'cause I can't bear to see the man I've been come rising up in me again In the arms of Your mercy I find rest 'cause You know just how far the east is from the west From one scarred hand to the other
5/04/2010
Tenth Avenue North - By Your Side
And I'll be by your side Wherever you fall In the dead of night Whenever you call And please don't fight These hands that are holding you; Cause I, I love you I want you to know That I, I love you I'll never let you go
Dare to be different!
Dare to Be Different!
By Joyce Meyer
Are you tired of playing games, wearing masks or trying to be someone other than yourself? Wouldn't you like the freedom to just be accepted for who you are, without the pressure to be someone you really don't know how to be? Would you like to learn how to embrace your uniqueness and resist the pull to be like everyone else?
God knew what He was doing when He made you. You are a unique individual—God created you the way you are! It's time that we dare to accept ourselves as different and stop being insecure about who we are.
Be Courageous
If you’re going to overcome insecurities and be the person God’s called you to be, you must have the courage to be different. Unhappiness and frustration happen when we reject our uniqueness and try to be like each other. If you’re going to be successful at being completely you, then you’re going to have to take a chance on not being like everyone else. You must ask yourself, Am I a people pleaser or a God pleaser?
Who Decides Your Worth?
Becoming a people pleaser is one of the easiest things we can do...but it can ultimately make us very unhappy. When we begin pleasing others, we begin to hear comments that make us feel good about ourselves. That’s okay as long as we don't derive our sense of worth from it. People are too fickle for us to place our sense of worth in their opinions. We’re worth something because God says we're worth something—not because of what people think or say about us.
People pleasers allow others to control their lives in order to gain acceptance and approval. But God doesn't want us to be easily manipulated or controlled by others. We shouldn't let other people's opinions of us control our actions.
Walking in Love
At the same time, we must walk in love. We can't just do anything we want, whenever we want, with total disregard for the feelings of others. We can't say, "I'm going to do this, and if you don't like it, that's tough—that's your problem!" The Bible commands us to love others, and love doesn't behave that way. However, we must not allow people to manipulate and control us to the point that we’re never free to be who we are. If we do, we’ll always try to become the person we think others expect us to be.
Break Out of the Mold
The world (those we know and deal with on a daily basis who may be family, friends, people in the neighborhood or even in the church) is continually trying to conform us to its image. The word conform means "to be similar in form or character; to behave in accordance with prevailing modes or customs.” Romans 12:2 says, Do not be conformed to this world (this age),…but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind…It’s then that we find the good and acceptable will of God for our lives.
People will always try to fit us into their mold, partly due to their own insecurity. It makes them feel better about what they are doing if they can get someone else to do it too. Very few people have the ability to be who they are and let everybody else be who they are. Can you imagine how nice the world would be if we would all do that? Each person would be secure in who he is and let others be who they are. We would not have to try to be imitations of each other.
Unique for a Purpose
God wants to take us, with all our weaknesses and inabilities, and transform us, by working from the inside out, to do something powerful in this earth. If we’re going to overcome insecurities and succeed at being ourselves, we can't continue to be afraid of what everybody else may think. We can't continue to allow others to fit us into their mold. We are different! We are unique! God created us this way to accomplish His purposes here on earth.
By Joyce Meyer
Are you tired of playing games, wearing masks or trying to be someone other than yourself? Wouldn't you like the freedom to just be accepted for who you are, without the pressure to be someone you really don't know how to be? Would you like to learn how to embrace your uniqueness and resist the pull to be like everyone else?
God knew what He was doing when He made you. You are a unique individual—God created you the way you are! It's time that we dare to accept ourselves as different and stop being insecure about who we are.
Be Courageous
If you’re going to overcome insecurities and be the person God’s called you to be, you must have the courage to be different. Unhappiness and frustration happen when we reject our uniqueness and try to be like each other. If you’re going to be successful at being completely you, then you’re going to have to take a chance on not being like everyone else. You must ask yourself, Am I a people pleaser or a God pleaser?
Who Decides Your Worth?
Becoming a people pleaser is one of the easiest things we can do...but it can ultimately make us very unhappy. When we begin pleasing others, we begin to hear comments that make us feel good about ourselves. That’s okay as long as we don't derive our sense of worth from it. People are too fickle for us to place our sense of worth in their opinions. We’re worth something because God says we're worth something—not because of what people think or say about us.
People pleasers allow others to control their lives in order to gain acceptance and approval. But God doesn't want us to be easily manipulated or controlled by others. We shouldn't let other people's opinions of us control our actions.
Walking in Love
At the same time, we must walk in love. We can't just do anything we want, whenever we want, with total disregard for the feelings of others. We can't say, "I'm going to do this, and if you don't like it, that's tough—that's your problem!" The Bible commands us to love others, and love doesn't behave that way. However, we must not allow people to manipulate and control us to the point that we’re never free to be who we are. If we do, we’ll always try to become the person we think others expect us to be.
Break Out of the Mold
The world (those we know and deal with on a daily basis who may be family, friends, people in the neighborhood or even in the church) is continually trying to conform us to its image. The word conform means "to be similar in form or character; to behave in accordance with prevailing modes or customs.” Romans 12:2 says, Do not be conformed to this world (this age),…but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind…It’s then that we find the good and acceptable will of God for our lives.
People will always try to fit us into their mold, partly due to their own insecurity. It makes them feel better about what they are doing if they can get someone else to do it too. Very few people have the ability to be who they are and let everybody else be who they are. Can you imagine how nice the world would be if we would all do that? Each person would be secure in who he is and let others be who they are. We would not have to try to be imitations of each other.
Unique for a Purpose
God wants to take us, with all our weaknesses and inabilities, and transform us, by working from the inside out, to do something powerful in this earth. If we’re going to overcome insecurities and succeed at being ourselves, we can't continue to be afraid of what everybody else may think. We can't continue to allow others to fit us into their mold. We are different! We are unique! God created us this way to accomplish His purposes here on earth.
Jesus Foretells The Future (Matthew 24)
Jesus Foretells the Future from the Bible in the book of Matthew chapter 24
1 As Jesus was leaving the Temple grounds, his disciples pointed out to him the various Temple buildings. 2 But he responded, “Do you see all these buildings? I tell you the truth, they will be completely demolished. Not one stone will be left on top of another!”
3 Later, Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives. His disciples came to him privately and said, “Tell us, when will all this happen? What sign will signal your return and the end of the world?[a]”
4 Jesus told them, “Don’t let anyone mislead you, 5 for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many. 6 And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately. 7 Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. 8 But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.
9 “Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers.[b] 10 And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other. 11 And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people. 12 Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations[c] will hear it; and then the end will come.
15 “The day is coming when you will see what Daniel the prophet spoke about—the sacrilegious object that causes desecration[d] standing in the Holy Place.” (Reader, pay attention!) 16 “Then those in Judea must flee to the hills. 17 A person out on the deck of a roof must not go down into the house to pack. 18 A person out in the field must not return even to get a coat. 19 How terrible it will be for pregnant women and for nursing mothers in those days. 20 And pray that your flight will not be in winter or on the Sabbath. 21 For there will be greater anguish than at any time since the world began. And it will never be so great again. 22 In fact, unless that time of calamity is shortened, not a single person will survive. But it will be shortened for the sake of God’s chosen ones.
23 “Then if anyone tells you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah,’ or ‘There he is,’ don’t believe it. 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones. 25 See, I have warned you about this ahead of time.
26 “So if someone tells you, ‘Look, the Messiah is out in the desert,’ don’t bother to go and look. Or, ‘Look, he is hiding here,’ don’t believe it! 27 For as the lightning flashes in the east and shines to the west, so it will be when the Son of Man[e] comes. 28 Just as the gathering of vultures shows there is a carcass nearby, so these signs indicate that the end is near.[f]
29 “Immediately after the anguish of those days,
the sun will be darkened,
the moon will give no light,
the stars will fall from the sky,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.[g]
30 And then at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.[h] 31 And he will send out his angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world[i]—from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven.
32 “Now learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branches bud and its leaves begin to sprout, you know that summer is near. 33 In the same way, when you see all these things, you can know his return is very near, right at the door. 34 I tell you the truth, this generation[j] will not pass from the scene until all these things take place. 35 Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear.
36 “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself.[k] Only the Father knows.
37 “When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day. 38 In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat. 39 People didn’t realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes.
40 “Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.
42 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. 43 Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into. 44 You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.
45 “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. 46 If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. 47 I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. 48 But what if the servant is evil and thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ 49 and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? 50 The master will return unannounced and unexpected, 51 and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
1 As Jesus was leaving the Temple grounds, his disciples pointed out to him the various Temple buildings. 2 But he responded, “Do you see all these buildings? I tell you the truth, they will be completely demolished. Not one stone will be left on top of another!”
3 Later, Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives. His disciples came to him privately and said, “Tell us, when will all this happen? What sign will signal your return and the end of the world?[a]”
4 Jesus told them, “Don’t let anyone mislead you, 5 for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many. 6 And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately. 7 Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. 8 But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.
9 “Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers.[b] 10 And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other. 11 And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people. 12 Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations[c] will hear it; and then the end will come.
15 “The day is coming when you will see what Daniel the prophet spoke about—the sacrilegious object that causes desecration[d] standing in the Holy Place.” (Reader, pay attention!) 16 “Then those in Judea must flee to the hills. 17 A person out on the deck of a roof must not go down into the house to pack. 18 A person out in the field must not return even to get a coat. 19 How terrible it will be for pregnant women and for nursing mothers in those days. 20 And pray that your flight will not be in winter or on the Sabbath. 21 For there will be greater anguish than at any time since the world began. And it will never be so great again. 22 In fact, unless that time of calamity is shortened, not a single person will survive. But it will be shortened for the sake of God’s chosen ones.
23 “Then if anyone tells you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah,’ or ‘There he is,’ don’t believe it. 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones. 25 See, I have warned you about this ahead of time.
26 “So if someone tells you, ‘Look, the Messiah is out in the desert,’ don’t bother to go and look. Or, ‘Look, he is hiding here,’ don’t believe it! 27 For as the lightning flashes in the east and shines to the west, so it will be when the Son of Man[e] comes. 28 Just as the gathering of vultures shows there is a carcass nearby, so these signs indicate that the end is near.[f]
29 “Immediately after the anguish of those days,
the sun will be darkened,
the moon will give no light,
the stars will fall from the sky,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.[g]
30 And then at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.[h] 31 And he will send out his angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world[i]—from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven.
32 “Now learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branches bud and its leaves begin to sprout, you know that summer is near. 33 In the same way, when you see all these things, you can know his return is very near, right at the door. 34 I tell you the truth, this generation[j] will not pass from the scene until all these things take place. 35 Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear.
36 “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself.[k] Only the Father knows.
37 “When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day. 38 In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat. 39 People didn’t realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes.
40 “Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.
42 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. 43 Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into. 44 You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.
45 “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. 46 If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. 47 I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. 48 But what if the servant is evil and thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ 49 and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? 50 The master will return unannounced and unexpected, 51 and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
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