What Matters Today

There are things in life we cannot alter. We can try but it only leads to frustration. Mother Nature brings storms and violent actions that damage our living space and we can not stop that from happening. War happens and people we love die and we can not change that. Other people do things that cause us grief and we must deal with the fall out in our lives.

 

Things have happened in the past that affect us but they are beyond our repair. Until we recognize the reality of the past as it was and everyone in it as they were, the past will control us. If we let it all stand as history and simply let it be we can find peace with in us. Then we can create a peaceful now and a peaceful future. If we learn from the past we can keep from repeating the mistakes of the past and grow as a person and as a society.

 It is how we live out this day that affects our lives and the lives of those around us. Each choice in the now matters in our future so each point of change is under our control for that moment. So let us live each day to the fullest, loving God and loving others in each action we take. This is what matters today.

LENT 2013

It seems like it is way too soon but Wednesday February 13th marks the beginning of  the Church Season called "Lent" a time for preparing our selves for the events of Holy Week and the celebration of Resurrection Sunday. You will not find the word "lent" in the Bible nor is it a required observance in the Protestant tradition. It is however an opportunity for spiritual reflection and renewal.

This year my Lenten reflection is taking on a more personal and I hope a deeper spiritual journey. At all times it is my desire to faithfully fulfill God's call as my first priority. Every day I am spending additional time in listening prayers, times of silence and spiritual openness to the Holy Spirit. I ask that you also spend some time this Lent, listening for God's direction. Let Lent 2013 be a season of spiritual growth for you and the Christian Church you attend. 

The Ten Lost Tribes of Israel

The Ten Lost Tribes of Israel

I have always been amused by the various speculations about what happened to the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel. The bible tells us all about it but still people come up with weird theories about what “really” happened to them.

I first heard about them when driving in Texas in the 1960’s and a radio preacher preached about how they went to England and took the stone that the throne of King David sat on. It is now under the throne of England according to him. He also said the Jesus spent his twelve lost years in England with those tribes.

Joseph Smith, the founder of the Mormon church, needed a reason for Jesus to come to the Americas so he wrote about the Ten Lost Tribes sailing to central America and that Jesus went there to preach the gospel to them.

The January issue of the Smithsonian published an article about the Ten Lost Tribes settling in Japan and that Jesus ducked out on the crucifixion and traveled to Japan to Join that at the village of Shingo where he lived a long life, married and had children and died. In 1964 they suddenly discovered his grave and now the place is a tourist site.

What the Bible tells us clearly is that after the death of Solomon about 930 BC the ten northern tribes broke for Jerusalem and formed the Kingdom of Israel and the tribes of Judah and Benjamin formed the Kingdom of Judah. According to the Book of Kings Assyrians conquered Israel in 721 BC and dispersed those tribes assimilating them into their empire. Resistance was futile.  Some lower class members of those tribes evaded capture and became the Samaritans and there are still a few of them left in the Holy Land.  

What Does "Lord" Mean?

The term “Lord” literally means owner, ruler, master or one who is obeyed.

It has many uses both secular and religious. We often use it when referring to God or Christ. It is sometimes used in a less than a spiritual sense in casual conversation such as “O my lord!”

I wonder what difference it would make if when we called God or Christ “Lord” we actually meant it. If instead of being a title with little meaning for us, we actually mean it and obeyed God in all aspects of our lives. We would obey the Ten Commandments at all times. We would follow the teachings of Jesus at all times. What if we really loved our neighbors as much as we love ourselves? What if we returned good for evil instead of getting even? What if we shared the love of Christ with everyone we met?

I think the world would be a different place if every Christian all over the world obeyed the Lord of all the universe.

Is God really your LORD?

Out of Context

During political campaigns both sides will resort to taking video clips and edit them to show a candidate saying something quite different than what the people listing to him or her heard. Taking a piece of the speech out of context can make it seem like something terrible was said.

One example out of the many was the President saying, “You didn’t build that.” In the context he was talking about the infrastructure like highways, phone lines and water pipes. Out of the context political ads made it seem like he said that the people who built a business didn’t build their business.

This has been going on forever in election maneuvering. It is not honest but that never stops them. The concern for me and all voters is to pay attention to the negative ads and find out what was really said. Sadly we too often hear what we want to hear and accept as truth what our side is saying even if we know it is a lie.

   

An Unforgettable Sermon

I once had a plan for a sermon  but Murphy and his silly laws got in the way. The sermon was from Matthew 25 about the story of ten bride’s maids and their oil lamps. You need to know that the last time I was in Jerusalem I purchased several clay oil lamps of the kind used in the days of Jesus. My thought was to use one of them to demonstrate how these lamps provided light and how oil was added and have the lamp burning on the communion table during the sermon.

On Friday I took my oil lamp to church and practiced with several wicks to get it just right. The fourth time it worked like a charm. The lamp worked just the way I wanted it to and it was easy to put out. Then I thought I would introduce it during the children’s moment and leave it lit on the table. It seemed like such a good plan to help every one focus on the sermon and remember it well.

On that Sunday I had everything set up and the children came forward and it was all working just like I thought up until I added a bit of oil to the lamp and some of it got on the top of the lamp. We sang “give me oil for my lamp keep me burning.” It wasn’t much just a bit and I lit the wick. It looked OK and was for a moment. I set the lamp on the table and got ready for communion. During communion I looked at the lamp and noticed that not only was the wick burning but so was the whole lamp.

One of the elders tried to put it out with the candle snuffer but that was too small and then the lamp fell off the table onto the floor… Well we got the fire out with no real damage but it will be a sermon that no one who was present will ever forget. We can make great plans and even work hard to make them work but we need to be ready for the unexpected. Being ready for the unexpected was even covered in the sermon.  

Our Federal Government

The preamble of the US Constitution gives us the purpose for establishing our representative form of government. It is short but it covers a lot of concepts by which we are governed. I have been thinking about each of these reasons for our federal government.

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

Justice:

First on the list is justice and I read that equal justice for all people in this country. We may have a trial by a jury of our peers and when accused the arresting authority must inform us of our rights. This includes the right to an attorney provided by the state if we can not afford one.

Domestic Tranquility:

The federal government is charged with keeping the peace within our borders.

Provide for the common defense:

Provide for Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines to keep us safe from outside aggressors.

Promote the General Welfare:

People interpret this in many ways. The debate is on going concerning our care of the poor, sick and disabled. Is the affordable health care act covered by this?

Secure the Blessings of Liberty:

Not just for ourselves but for future generations.