Oprah - Again?

Someone asked me about a new series on XM Satellite radio sponsored by Oprah and Friends regarding A Course in Miracles. Since I was not familiar with XM Radio (I get all the radio I need on AM/FM) nor A Course in Miracles (I find all the miracles I need in the Bible), I decided to do a little research.

I found two really interesting things --before I quit looking-- and, while I may do some more research, I will not be rushing out to buy an XM radio. While looking at the workbook for A Course in Miracles, I found the following which is to introduce me to some part of this "work" of genius:

The schism is the nonexistent occurrence of objective reality producing an apparent separation of cause and effect.
The Quantum Identification of the Universal mind is dimensionless. All of its points are interconnected in a non-local instantaneous inclusion. So points A, B, C and D are the same point.
The apparent distance between cause and effect establishes a holographic self-identity projected as space-time.

I don't want to be unkind, but take my word for it -- this is the hokiest thing I have seen lately. The "Master Teacher" (some guy who writes or teaches this baloney) wants you to think there is something really worth while in these words -- there isn't. And what follows this foolishness is radically worthless (as far as I read before getting totally bored).

But, the whole experience so far is not without good. I found another statement included in this workbook (at least I think it's in the workbook, or maybe it's in the "novel," or only the mind of the "Master Teacher"): Truth is true and nothing else is true.

You know what? That is the truest statement one can make. What is important to understand is that the entirety of that Truth is revealed in God's Word. All the rest, and I am including A Course in Miracles, is worthless drivel.

Let me know if I am not being clear.

Post Christmas

Great food! Great gifts! Great times with the family and friends. The tree will be coming down as soon as the wife gets a break in shopping the "after Christmas" sales. (I can't believe she was gone before 7 o'clock this morning)

Some folks will forget the Savior. At least from the perspective of being a "faithful servant" during the coming months. Some will get another dose of concentration on a Sunday in Spring, but many will forget the basic responsibilities of ministering God's grace and llove to those who are part of the family, and reaching out to those who are not.

Warm fuzzies about a baby in a manger, shepherds and wisemen and such, are not worth much if we are not driven to a commitment to the Bride of Christ 364 day a year. It is the Bride for which He died, and will soon return. Get to work! Seriously!

Birth of A Savior

I don't know where in Bethlehem Jesus was born. A few days ago I walked thru the tiny entrance to the Church of the Nativity where many say the Savior was born. Perhaps it was there, in that darkened building occupied by three major religions, replete with a maze of icons, a thousand years of dust and grime, and pushing, surging knots of people attempting to reach a point that exists, ostensibly, to honor the Christ child.

In a sense it reminds me of Christmas. The brilliant light of a guiding star and a host of Angels speaking glory to God for His incomparable, unimaginable grace, now drowned in a sea of selfishness and greed, focus on self-worth and worldly success, attempting to reach some place where an infinite God will value our human goodness.

I would rather have come with the first shepherds who visited the place where God, robed in humanity, slept quietly in His virgin mother's arms, to then hurry off to "report the message told about this child," and return to my field of labor "glorifying and praising God."

I urge you to bypass the Earthly spotlight on lesser things, and concentrate your undivided attention on He who was born that you might live.

Llove Story

I am profoundly disappointed and disturbed when I discover that someone I llove does not know it with certainty. It means that there is a failure on my part to practice whatever discipline is necessary to demonstrate that genuine llove. The discipline may be no more than an occasional phone call, a brief visit, or an extended handshake. It may take much more than that, but, whatever is needed -- well, that's my task, and my joy.

God never disappoints in demonstrating His llove. The gift we celebrate at Christmas is one expression of God's infinite llove. But He does not stop there. He is utilizing the characteristics of llove He revealed in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a, every day, in your life and mine.

Oh, that we would be more like Him!

Politically Correct

Our society has lost its senses in this business of making an attempt to always be politically correct. That would be especially true of the multitude of people who are seeking the nomination for President of the United States.

Now, if you have not heard Mike Huckabee's most recent advertisement in the Iowa race for votes, you should. What is that man thinking? Has he completely lost his mind? Doesn't he get it?

Well in the words of one "hope to be famous" author - "I Wish I'd Said That!"

What To Say

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Joyous Tidings, Peace On Earth; what does one utilize as a greeting at this time of the year? We spend a lot of time concerned about how society takes Christ out of Christmas, but I am not sure He was ever in. I don't mean that people have failed to celebrate the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, but the holiday has always been more about other things than about a total allegiance to the Son of God. Not many people around the World will be preparing a gift to honor God for sending His Son in human flesh to dwell among us. (The only appropriate gift, by the way, is a righteous life presented consistently through the year.)

I'm going to try a new greeting this year - God lloves you! That's the message of Christmas. That's what all of the fuss misses. God lloves you sufficiently to provide the perfect sacrifice for the sin that condemns you to separation from Him forever. You have the opportunity to receive His grace through faith, and present to Him a life of obedience to His revealed Truth.

When we find that in Christmas, we've discovered the value of a celebration.

It's My Right

It is right for me to be angry, even to death. Jonah 3:9b

We’ve done a fairly good job of getting people in this marvelous Country of ours to recognize that we have “rights.” The Declaration of Independence says you have a right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The United States Constitution gives you the right to have a Government “of the people, by the people, and for the people.” I have a right to consult an attorney if I am arrested, and I have the right to carry a concealed weapon if I have a license. I have, by law, the right to worship as I please, and by calling to make that worship an act of total obedience to the LORD of Heaven and Earth.

Good Christian folk have brought that “rights” concept across the threshold of the Church house. While we can’t find any documentation to support our ideas, we are confident we have rights regarding the behavior of other believers, and when someone offends me, I have a right to be angry. When someone whispers unkind things behind my back, or speaks positively of that which I do not approve, I have the right to “trash” them in my Bible Study class, and share the news far and wide.

I like Jonah. When I was a kid I was enamored by the narrative of the big fish, and poor Jonah being spit out like a sunflower hull. I had no real appreciation for Jonah’s anger when he did not get his way, until I discovered as I grew older the insensitivities we have toward God and others. Jonah was so angry at God’s kindness and mercy he would rather die than admit his hard heart had separated him from an understanding of God’s grace.

I know people like Jonah in the 21st century Church. They would rather wither away (spiritually) than admit they are angered by God’s willingness to forgive. They harbor resentment that God is “slow to anger and abundant in llovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm.” (Jonah 4:2)

Christmas is not the time to focus on caring for others. Every day is the time to focus on lloving the brethren, caring for one another, forgiving one another, and establishing clear channels for edifying one another as the number of days before His next coming grows smaller.

This Christmas season is a great time (because it is NOW) to stop wrangling over your right to anything. Instead embrace the gift, a Child born, a Son given. Establish your ability to live under authority, the authority of one who is called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Start focusing on forgiving because you have been forgiven, lloving because you have been lloved, giving because you have been given eternal life, which now is and forever will be.

Avoiding Evil

In our study of Romans, going on in the Bible Study I attend on Wednesday evenings, we heard from Chapter 6 that the word sanctification is used in the New Testament regarding the separation of the believer from evil things and ways. I have to admit that I fail to understand how individuals who have been redeemed for some time (5 years/50 years; I don't know) continue to struggle with an understanding of evil things and/or ways.

I am not saying I fail to understand how one can get caught suddenly, or even continually, in an evil thing or way, and find themselves "in sin." What I am saying is that such a one should never be confused about Truth and whether a particular action or behavior is an evil thing or way.

As I read, I find my self confused as to how this matter of Truth is being discussed at a Ft. Worth, Texas Church. Heaven help us if we don't do all we can to share the llove of God with sinners. But let's not be confused about what is and is not sin. That's not a matter of conscience -- it's a matter of ignorance.

Security

From somewhere in my past of hearing lots of things I seem to remember the phrase, "Praise the Lord and pass the bullets." The reality of life is that some folks are going to do violent things, and others are going to suffer for that. My heart hurts for the families of the two who have died, seemingly randomly, in this area, and for those who lost family members in the Colorado incidents. We can always trust the Father, but I for one am thankful Life Church had security guards prepared to do whatever it takes to protect life.

We have a responsibility as husbands and fathers, to protect our homes and families, and as those who work in leadership, to do everything possible to protect those who attend our Church facilities.

We have a good security plan at the Church I attend. I am one who is going to insist, however, that we make it even better. That is not a result of fear, because fear is not of the Lord, but of a knowledge that comes from observing the actuality of life. I have learned, for example, to ride my motorcycle very defensively. That is not because I am aprehensive or a poor rider, but because there are still multitudes of motorists who have no regard or concern for those on two wheels.

We owe it to our family to acknowledge that many things can be dangerous. Doing everything possible to forstall that danger, or deal with it effectively, is wise and prudent. The overwhelming likelyhood is that nothing of great concern will happen. If and when it does, we will have assurance we are as prepared as possible.

Someone For President

I heard a very popular radio personality (in this area) say, while talking about who should be President of the United States, that if he believed two candidates were equally matched in all the necessary ingredients, he would vote for the individual "that could do the most for me."

I am sure I know what he means, but let me for a moment be critical of what he said. That seems to be a major problem in our society. What can be done for me? What do I get out of this? How am I going to prosper under this leadership? All important questions, no doubt. But is that what we really want?

I am going to support the individual who I believe will do what is right and best for the United States of America. Sometimes what I want is not what is best for our Nation. As a young man I watched my friends die in Vietnam, and I sought "peace at any price." I am much wiser now.

So much of the rhetoric we hear on the "campaign trail" is about what some individual is going to do for "me" (which is probably an impossibility, and most likely untrue, e.g. "my Government will give you more and charge you less," unhuh!) I, for one, don't want to hear that. I want to know what you are going to do, and how you are going to do it, in leading our beloved United States of America to continued prosperity, safety, and individual freedom to pursue life, liberty and happiness.

Have you considered Mike Huckabee? I'm taking a real close look.

Pain

Sometimes the hurt is so great you feel as if something doesn't help, the pain will sweep over you in an overwhelming, life-ending agony. When it is a physical pain you are confident that if you can just tell the physician how and where it hurts he will be able to empathize sufficiently to render the pain harmless and end it.

Emotional pain is a different story. When you can't (or won't) share the source of the pain, or explain why a state of lethargy and apathy plague your days, people are quick to assume you are angry, or indifferent toward them, or just being a pain in the neck.

The reality of life is that "things happen." In any group of folks (a Church, for example) there are multitudes of things going on in the life of indivduals, some physical, some emotional, and, as a matter of fact, some folks are just a "pain."

Is there a "spiritual solution?" Yes. Cut everyone some slack! That may sound a little "worldly," but it really isn't. If someone you meet seems a little "off" their game, just mention that you llove them, and are available if they have a need you can meet. It may help their pain, and it will certainly help lower the conflict quotient. That's a good thing!

The Best Gift

“. . .a son will be given to us. . .” Isaiah 9:6b

What is the best gift you can give someone? I know over the many Christmas seasons I have celebrated the Incarnation, I have received some really great gifts. My life-mate, unlike me, pays attention during the year and always knows what I have looked at, longed for, made reference to during the year. I find myself, as we approach Christmas Eve, asking everyone who knows her what they think I should get her for Christmas. If she has given any indications during the year, I have long since forgotten.

We can break most gift thinking into two categories. What does one need, and what does one want. Sometimes they are the same, often they are widely diverse. I always need socks, a new pair of jeans, a key to the lock I’ve been unable to open since August, and, of course, I need, really need, an additional do-hickey for my Harley. Usually there are some things I want as well. She is always on top of all that. I wish she were so fortunate in relationship to her gifts.

I am convinced that God gave us what we needed. Place it before history, or some two thousand years ago, God came, dressed in humanity, because we needed a Savior. Without Him we would surely die, separated from God forever. The expense of God’s gift is beyond our understanding and Christ’s willingness to abandon Heaven for the cross is incomprehensible. All that I need I find in Him. The llove He shares in my heart overflows to the need of others until He comes in all His fullness to their life as well.

I am as surely convinced that God gave us what we wanted. I longed for peace with God and found it. I sought for the peace of God, and it fills my days. I hunted llove and discovered it in Him who is llove. My heart required hope, and Christ became my hope – both now and beyond this Earthly life.

Perhaps, during this season of the year, you need to decide what it is you really want. I can tell you clearly what you need, explain to you your future without it, and show you clearly how to find it. But, in its finality, it must be something you want because God has awakened in you the desire for grace though faith which leads to life abundant.

The best gift is both what you need and what you want. I have experienced that many times with my family, and with my Lord. That is what I will celebrate during these days. If you are truly longing for life – let me know. I know how to access the Giver.

God's Beautiful World

I believe God created the Earth and all that is in (on) it. Much of what I see is beautiful. We have polluted it, scarred it, burned it, covered it over with concrete, but there is still much that is beautiful beyond description.

Sometimes we make things beautiful (at least in our own estimation). I know my wife makes our home beautiful at Christmas. It's not that it is not beautiful (and you can create your own idea of what beauty is, for indeed it is always in the eye of the beholder) at other times, but it is always "ordinary" except at Christmas. She uses the tree with it's scores of ornaments, the nativity scene, decorations of winter, and items we have both purchased and received as gifts, to create a unique reminder that God is the great giver of life and health and every good and perfect gift.

I never forget that, during the rest of the year, but this is the time or "season" when we choose to make that the focus of our home, our thoughts, our family. Some would say that is wrong. We should not decorate or utilize the baubles of life to create an environment for celebrating.

I want to assure you that the beauty of the Earth is here to remind me of His gracious goodness. The beauty (again, in our estimation) we create is to remind us of His incredible gift. It's not that I need the reminder, but that I want the reminder. I want these few days of focus each year to heighten the awareness I have the rest of the year of what He has done.

Paul (the Apostle, writer of much of the New Testament) says you can't judge me for that. (see Colossians 2:16) I have the freedom in Christ to celebrate Him and His wonderful infinite grace as I see fit within the confines of His revealed Truth.

I don't see "Santa" at Christmas. You may, if you like. I see Jesus. Not just a baby in a manger, but the God of Creation, the God of Heaven, the God of infinite llove, incarnate, taking on the flesh of humanity so that He might give Himself a ransom for my life and that of many others, on Calvary's Cross. How, you say, do you see that when our society is so fraught with disbelief and ignorance? I choose to see that, beloved. I choose that!

Christmas Celebration

My dad was not fond of Christmas. He was a bit more "reformed" in his thinking than a lot of Baptist preachers, and thought we ought to celebrate the birth of the Savior 52 Sundays a year. Consequently, when I was a boy, we didn't decorate much, if at all, for Christmas. Some years we would have a very small tree, sometimes not. I remember getting gifts, but the extravagance many of us now know was non-existent.

My wife says I am moving in that direction (and have been for many years). I assume she is right (isn't she always?). I think we are too inward focused during these days. I know the Church I attend is lavish in helping those less fortunate, and my family is part of that help. I cannot help but wonder, though, if Dad was better on track, Biblically speaking.

We who write, or speak, or teach for the family of God are not going to change by our thoughts and words much about how people celebrate Christmas. But we can place a greater emphasis on celebrating His birth, His sacrifical death, and His resurrection from the dead every week of the year. That would change our lives much more than spending less on ourselves during December.

I think I'll speak to the preacher at my Church about how to do that!

Favor

I promise to spare you all of the details, but I found it necessary to "call in a favor." Sometimes along the way one gets involved in other peoples lives, and as a result they say, "if you ever need a favor, let me know." Well, no matter how I try to avoid it, that time came for me.

I called my friend, and of course, he said he'd handle what I needed. I'm blessed.

I am reminded that we are caught up in this life with one another. Things that we do, or fail to do, become a part of the fabric of our existence. We become both debtor and supplier at times, and we give and receive, we do and are done to, we care and we are cared about. That is llove!

God saw our need, met it in Christ Jesus whose birth we celebrate during these days. Now we see those around us who have need, and by meeting that need, handling that problem, expending that energy, going that extra mile, we demonstrate our llove for them and for Him who died in our place. We reach to touch the face of God by reaching out to touch the face of others.

Look around for someone who needs what you have been given. To whom much has been given, much is required.

Celebration

I was in New York City on 5th Avenue, around the 42nd street area, a few days ago. The tree at Rockefeller Center is just beautiful. Too bad it has to die for the celebration. I never cease to be amazed at what is spent from a financial perspective to attract attention. I know much of our economy as a Nation is dependent on this season as we tally what we have managed during the year. I can't stop thinking about how many mouths in the Sudan countryside could be fed with just a little of our excess. I know we are not doing nothing about that, but still, it's just a drop of water in a big, dry lake.

Christmas is about us. God sent His son to us and for us. He lloved us infinitely, and He gave His very best, totally and completely. And yet, we can't make Christmas just about us. It has to be about others, the poor, the needy, the hungry, the sick, the imprisoned. It has to be about those who have never heard the Good News.

Just 22 more days before the day. Now is a good time to get thinking and planning for others. Right?