Who Would Jesus Vote For?

Who Would Jesus Vote For? This is a very well written article by Larry Alex Taunton published by in the Faith/Religion Section of CNN's webpage. Just thought I would share it with you, (if you click the link to read it). 

By the way, the image used, "How Would Jesus Vote", is an image used by the Church of God, who in no way sponsored, or are affiliated with, the article written above. 

HE Already Has in Mind What HE is Going to Do!

For the first time in a long while, I sat down and read the Bible. I am trying to practice Lectio Devina. (click here for more info) I started reading, out loud from the Book of John Chapter 6. The chapter starts with Jesus about to feed the 5000. As directed by Lectio Devina I read the first few verses out loud several times trying to let God give me a word or phrase to meditate and pray over. Here is what stood out to me;

Chapter 6, verse 5 -- "When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, 'Where shall we buy bread for those people to eat?' He asked this only to test him, for HE ALREADY HAD IN MIND WHAT HE WAS GOING TO DO."

Wow!

With Jamie, my bride, accepting a new job in Waxahachie and all the effects of this (moving, selling the house, me finding a job (still) and the kids starting a new school), I have a lot of questions. I am sure Philip (and the other disciples) had lots of questions for Jesus as well, when 5000 people needed to be fed. Despite the questions I have, I do not need to worry; MY JESUS ALREADY HAS IN MIND WHAT HE IS GOING TO DO!

If Jesus were right here next to me at this moment, I could see/hear him asking me, "Mark, how do plan on finding a job and a place to live in Waxahachie, when you still have a house to sell in Longview?" All the while he is smiling on the inside, knowing that already knows what he plans to do with me and my family.

Sadly, like Philip, I sometimes forget who my Jesus really is and I respond in a similar way; "Eight months wages would not buy enough bread for each one to have a bite." -- Philip or "Eight months wages would not even come close to getting what we need to fix up our house to get it ready to sell." -- Mark English.

My Jesus has a plan. He knows what he is going to do. I need to pray to him that I have faith and despite my negative attitude, he will do what is good for me and my family.

The Reason For the Season

A phrase I am growing to dislike more and more is the phrase, "Jesus is the reason for the Season." Now, I realize that if it wasn't for the birth of my LORD and Saviour, Jesus, that we would not have this wonderful holiday called Christmas; however, isn't Jesus the reason for ALL Seasons? Did he not create the universe and all that is in it? What about Easter? Isn't he the reason for that season as well?

I know good minded Christian folk are just trying to remind people to remember the origins of Christmas and how it was created to focus the world's attention on Jesus and his teachings, instead of the greed promoted by retailers around the world; yet I can't help but think that if Christians really wanted to remind people about the love of Jesus we wouldn't be putting trash bags full of wrapping paper and empty boxes from all our new "luxuries" out by the curb the day after Christmas. Instead shouldn't we be give up giving gifts to each other and giving to those who are really in need. After all isn't Christmas the season of giving, not getting? Since Jesus is the reason for ALL seasons, shouldn't we be giving to those in need throughout the year, not just for Christmas?

So as we put out our trash the day after Christmas, remember that Jesus really is THE reason for this season and remember those who have would be grateful to have what we just replaced with more stuff we probably really didn't need in the first place.

Nick at Night

Matthew Chapter 3 tells of a influential member of the Jewish ruling council, Nicodemus, who came to Jesus at night (Nick at Night, get it!) to ask Jesus questions regarding the radical teachings Jesus had been teaching.

Why did Nicodemus come to Jesus at night...well, it could have been it was a time when not as many disciples of Jesus were around. It could could have been it was the only time he had available to speak to Jesus one-on-one; but probably it was because he did not want to be seen by the other religious leaders of the day, because of the persecution he might receive.

How many of us go to Jesus in secret to address Him with our questions, share with Him our concerns or just to worship Him. We won't pray with others while eating at a local restaurant because we are afraid of the stares we might get. We won't speak to God at work because we will be laughed at or scorned. We won't be Jesus followers at school because we will loose friends or social status. Teachers, scientist, politicians and other professionals are afraid to speak to Jesus during the light of day, because they might loose their jobs; much like Nicodemus probably would have if he had been caught speaking to Jesus in front of his peers.

Instead we come to Jesus at night or in private. How sad we are, when we do that. Are we that ashamed to be Christians? I am guilty of being "Nick at Night" on occasion, and I am embarrassed when I catch myself doing it.

One cool thing about Nicodemus's visit with Jesus that night; It was at that time that Jesus told him, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall have eternal life." God loves us no matter when we come to him, day or night; I just think He shakes His head for us, when we are to embarrassed to share Him with others.

Learning the Voice of God

When God first called the great Prophet Samuel, Samuel did not immediately recognize the voice of God! Samuel had to get advice from his mentor, the priest Eli, on what do when he heard God's voice calling to him. Only after the third calling from God did Samuel answer. Why didn't Samuel recognize God's voice? Maybe it was because he was not actively searching for God and listening for His voice? Once Samuel did learn the voice of God, Samuel followed God the rest of his life.

Even the best of us Christians who are seeking God probably could not recognize the voice of God if He did speak to us. Why? It it because the noise of the world drowns out the quite still voice of God? It is because we don't have a relationship with God and therefore treat His voice as if it were the voice of a stranger?

Sheep have to learn the voice of their specific shepherd over all the other voices in the fields. Once they do, they will only respond to THEIR Shepherd, and them alone. Maybe as Christians we should do a better job of learning the voice of our Shepherd, Jesus the Christ? There are many voices in our world who claim to be shepherds or just voices who want to distract us from hearing the voice of God. We need to learn the voice of God, because His is the only voice that will lead us to safety, among a world full of wolves!

Missing God

During the past few days, I have been trying my best to prioritize a few things. I have made time to fill out job applications. I have made time to focus on my health/physical fitness. I have even made more time to spend with my family; however, I have failed to make time to spend with my Father. You would think I would make time to spend with my Creator, the God of all the Universe, but I have not.

Before I took my current job, I read my Bible, spent time in prayer, and in devotion with God. Now, I barely read what I need to help teach my daughter's Sunday School class. I miss my God. I miss spending time trying to stay in touch with the Holy Spirit and conversing with Jesus. I do pray every morning, but I have yet to make a specific time to read His Words. I am a little lost without my Guiding Light.

I know God is there, even if I don't see Him. I just want to spend about three days refocusing myself to do His will and seek His direction for me in my life. When is the next holiday break?

Be Aware of the "Church of Oprah"

Apparently Oprah Winfrey has started her own religion, or if not, she is deliberately leading people away from the ONE TRUE GOD and the ONE TRUE CHRIST!

For a video about this, watch this You-Tube video called "The Church of Opera Exposed!". In this video you hear Oprah herself deny the divinity of Jesus! This video is also featured on God-Tube (One Word Church and Oprah Winfrey -- 666).
For a sample recruitment video for Oprah's new age religious movement, watch this .... O, The Oprah Religion Recruitment Video # 1.

In this Larry King interview with Oprah, you hear Oprah talking about the book that started all of this for her... It is the book called...The Secret, which apparently has been made into a movie and has its own web-site. For more info about the book, "The Secret" (click here).

There is also another book that Oprah credits for her "new found" religious ideas. It is called...A New Earth. She has publicly featured this book in her book club.

Snopes.com addresses this issue in this article about Oprah and new age religions.
Please check out these resources for yourself and pass the word on to those who still think Oprah is such a great person! I would also boycott the Oprah Show.

In the meantime, pray for Oprah and her mixed-up followers. After all she is still a child of God. She is just very confused!

Movie Review -- The Last Sin Eater

I just finished watching my latest DVD from Netflix. It was a great film called The Last Sin Eater, Directed by Michael Landon, Jr. The movie centers around a groups of Celtic immigrants to the U.S. who live in the Appalachian Mts. These God fearing immigrants brought with them an ancient Celtic belief that they have incorporated into their religion. Much like the ancient Jews had the "scapegoat" in the Bible to carry away their sins, the Celts in the movie have what they call a "Sin Eater." The Sin Eater is a person chosen by lot, to take on the all the sins of the dead upon himself, so that the dead can go to heaven with a clean soul.

Without trying to spoil the movie, I will skip many of the movie's details. What I most liked about the movie was the way a "Holy Man of God" describes Jesus as the true "Sin Eater" who is able to not only take the sins of the dead upon Himself, but he can also forgive and cast away the sins of the living; Thus making all people new and clean from their sins.

I am glad we as Christians don't have to worry about having our sins taken on by another person or having to become the person to take on the sins of others. Sadly this is a burden that many Christians voluntary take on for ourselves. We do not need a Sin Eater in our lives today, we have a Sin Forgiver in the shape of our Savior, Jesus!

This is great family film and I highly recommend it for the entire family.

At What Point Did Jesus Realize He Was the Son of God?

While on Spring Break my wife had us listen to a sermon that a friend of hers had recorded onto a CD. During this wonderful lesson, the speaker brought up the point that Jesus did not always know that he was the Son of God, thus He did not fully realize His mission on Earth until He learned about it later. Hmmmmm?

I was always under the impression that Jesus, from birth, knew who He was and why He was here. The speaker pointed out that if Jesus was truly a man like the rest of us, then when He was born He couldn't have possibly understood who He really was and what His mission was. He correctly stated that Jesus gave up all the "trappings" of being part of the God-Head to become a man, thus His human brain had to develop just like yours and mine did. Wow!!

The speaker said that Jesus' was probably told who He was by His mother Mary. She probably told Him the circumstances of His birth and what the angel Gabriel had told her about Him. Later when the wise men came to visit Him, He was probably introduced to a little more about His true nature. The speaker said, Jesus did not fully realize who He really was and His true mission until he was about 13 years of age, when he went to Jerusalem with his parents for the Passover. It was while He at Jerusalem that Jesus spent some time in the Temple studying with and asking questions with the religious leaders. It was here that Jesus started to research the prophecies regarding who He really was. Being divinely inspired He quickly put together the pieces and discovered the truth about His true Mission in life.

The speaker also pointed out that it wasn't until later that Jesus actually started to perform miracles. The speaker said, that God used this time to mold Jesus' earthly character to best perform what God expected Him to do. After Jesus was prepared and accepted His mission, then the His true power finally came upon Him.

Interesting points. Can you imagine having to try to explain to your child, that you were miraculously conceived, and that you are the Son of God? I'm sure Mary didn't quite understand everything regarding the full nature of Jesus and here she was trying to explain it to Him the best she could. Also can you imagine, from a normal man's point of view, discovering that you were supposed to die for the sins of all mankind? Try to wrap your normal man brain around that one? But if Jesus really was a man like us, He had to have struggled ever so briefly with the reality of what God expected of Him. Even in the Garden before he was crucified, Jesus was still asking God, "Is there another way?" At least Jesus was resolute in doing what God's will for Him was. I on the other hand am still trying to get, 'My own way,' more often that not.

When do you think Jesus realized he was fully God in nature?

Where Will You Choose to Meet God?

This question was asked during the lesson our minister gave last Sunday at our church. The lesson focused on the lives of the three young men in Daniel who choose to go to the firery furnace rather than bow down to the golden statue. (For a similar blog click here)

Our minister put the question to us to see if we fully trusted in our God as being a God who is in control at all times, not just the good times. Many Christians want to and choose to meet God. The problem is we choose to meet God in a place of our choosing. We want to meet God in a place where we don't have to suffer, or a place that makes us feel uncomfortable, or a place in which we don't have to sacrifice anything to get there. In effect we want God to come to us!

Our problem lies in the fact that God chooses where we are suppossed to meet Him. For Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, God wanted them to meet Him in the furnace. God could have rescued them from the furnace but He did not. He wanted them to meet Him in the furnace itself. These three young men, chose to have faith in their God and they choose to go into the furnace to meet their God. As a result God blessed their decision and he saved from the furnace after all.

God has the ability to save us from pain, suffering, death, disaster, disease, poverty, divorce, addictions, etc...but sometimes He chooses not to. Is it because He is mean and cruel? No, sometimes it is because of these painful times in our lives, that we learn the most valuable lessons of all. God sometimes uses the firery furnace to mold and shape us into what He wants us to be. He wants us to choose to meet Him in the fire. Only there will we then open to His power and will for us.

Many of the most powerful and faithful men and women in the Bible suffered because of circumstances allowed to happen to them by God. Moses learned of his true purpose while in exile in the desert. Joseph learned of his true purpose while as a prisoner in Egypt, after being sold by his own brothers. Abraham learned of his true purpose after being asked to move to a foreign land. Paul begged God to remove his "thorn in the flesh" but was told by God, "No" because only by suffering with his "thorn" could Paul truely appreciate his need for God in his life. Jesus himself begged God not to be crucified but instead He fullfilled His purpose by suffering and dying.

To be perfectly honest I have not yet chosen to meet God in the fire. I have "suffered" some because of choosing to follow God, but not to the point of putting it ALL on the line. As God continues to call me to meet with Him, where will I choose to meet Him? Will I again ask God to come to me, or will I become one of the "Furnace People" and choose to meet God in the furnace?

Yesterday is Gone So Say Goodbye

As mentioned in a previous blog...one of my favorite Christian music albums right now is Portable Sounds by Tobymac. One of the songs that I have been listening to a lot recently is called Suddenly. The song is about how when a person finally realizes that whatever has happened in the past no longer makes a difference once they truly accept the love, grace and forgiveness of our Savior, Jesus. Here are the lyrics I'm talking about...

"Sometimes in an instant, Sometimes we wait for years, But it comes down to the moment when faith eclipses fear, Your wondering is over the other side is real, You've broken through your mountain moved, And mercy is revealed....And suddenly all of its behind you, And I 'm here to remind you, That yesterday is gone so say goodbye, And finally the skies open above you, And love has truly found you, Now every thing's alive. Sometimes there's nothing left but to believe."

Cool Words huh? The fact is that once a person accepts Jesus as their Savior, all sins from you past are forgiven. Satan cannot use those sins against you to make you feel inferior or unworthy of God's ever present love for you.

In our battle with the Evil One (Satan), we should not focus on the past. We cannot change it. Only Christ can change the past...Hebrews 13:8 tells us that, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today and forever." We cannot fight battles in the past, but our God can. So let go of your past sins, God can and will forgive the sins of His children who come to Him. Sometimes we are so afraid that our past will come back to haunt us and that our sins will not be forgotten by God. It's a lie we are all prone to believe, but we must let our faith in God overcome that fear. We must act on our faith...not our fears. It is in that moment, that we truly become stronger warriors for God. We are no longer burdened by a load that no longer exists.

Keep your focus on the present. The Here and Now. Don't let Satan and his demons take your focus off what you have to do, "RIGHT NOW". If we take our eyes off our enemy to look back at our past, we are open to attacks from what is right in front of us.

So wave goodbye to yesterday, because it is gone...and stay focused on the present, knowing that we have a future in Heaven, as children of the KING!

Trying to Stay in the WORD

Once again I am facing the age old dilemma of how to stay active in my personal Bible study and reading. I am having trouble finding interrupted time in the mornings, reading seriously at work is almost impossible, afternoons after work would work on some days but not consistently, and nights...well, I'm really tired.

I used to get up about 15 minutes earlier in the mornings to spend a little prayer time and scripture reading, but I have slacked off on that. I should do that again. My days started better and I felt more connected to God, at least until lunch time. I have tried at night, but my selfishness tells me to catch up on the news/sports and the few television shows I choose to watch.

I need to once again, re-commit specific times to spend alone with my GOD. I need to make a priority. My Mission Statement tells what I really want to do with my life, but it's hard for a selfish person like me to "Just Do It, and Stick To It!"

A new men's Bible class is starting next Wednesday, maybe that will help me stay more focused!

My apologies to God for all of this...You really are the most important factor in my life. I just wish my true will would show more in my actions. Please help me, Father, to commit more time to your Words. Your son, a recovering sinner, ME

Dying to One's Self Is Not Easy

It seems the past few weeks or so I have been reading or hearing things that point to the need for Christians to "Die to their former selves and be reborn into their new life with Christ!" At first I was dismissing these "cues" as if to say, "I was baptized and I have repented of my sins. God loves me now and that is that!" I think God wanted me to hear more.

In my Sunday morning class at my church...we have been talking about how you must undergo a severe humbling process in order to turn your life fully over the the will of God. You must give up your own will, not only in mind, but in body, to the will of the Father. Even if the desires to continue in our sinful ways pull hard on our hearts, it's what the body does that shows the true desires of our hearts. We may confess all day long that we want to give up our sins, addictions, and selfish behaviors, but when we continue to choose to wallow in our hopelessness and choose not to act on our faith in God, we are showing that we are still giving in to the desire of our hearts to do what We want to do not what God wants us to do.

I have also been reading a book called "When Heaven Weeps" by Ted Dekker. In it the main character keeps referring to how Christians as a whole refuse to join Christ in His cruel and terrible death in order to show His love to others. He states we are perfectly fine to confess the love of Jesus, but we refuse to get our hands dirty to work to show that love. We say we love others, but if it means pain and suffering for ourselves, we will choose Self over Others every time.

God calls us to die our old self and join Christ in death. It is absolutely necessary to do this in order to fully understand, accept and act upon His Grace. There is a quote from the book that stands out..."Is the death of the will any less painful than the death of the body? Call it figurative if it makes you comfortable, but in reality the death of the will is far more traumatic than the death of the body." " In the death of the body the nerve endings soon stop feeling. In the death of the will the heart doesn't stop its bleeding so quickly."

Giving up our selfish will is hard to do. It's something I myself need to come face to face with. I am scared to death to do it. I have been a Christian for some time, but It's hard to show any tangible evidence of my faith as far as actively loving others is concerned. Recent events in my life have caused me to be much less judgemental when it comes to looking at the sins and actions of others, but I still have a hard time actively loving them.

My New Year's Resolution is to pray that God allows me to die to old self and be reborn a person who is fully capable of loving others the same way that He loves me. I am terrified of how God may choose to do this, but I know it will be the best thing for me. I am ready, I think. Pray for Me!

Who is a God like You?

I have been a Christian for the majority of my natural life. In all the years I have been a Christian I have to honestly say that I have read the Bible from cover to cover only twice (maybe three) time ever. I am just about to finish it for the third (maybe fourth) time. The hardest part of reading the Bible, to me, is reading through the major and minor prophets at the end of the Old Testament. The prophetic language is sometimes hard to understand and it seems very repetitive.

In my most recent attempt at reading through these books, I have tried to look at them with open eyes and with an open mind. What I discovered made me very sad, then angry and then extremely happy. The sad part was reading about the punishment that God was going to inflict on his people if they did not repent from their sinful ways and return to a life of righteousness and relationship with God. The angry part was that despite God's many warnings of what this punishment was, the Israelites and Judeans kept on sinning. I mean God warned them over and over again, that if they would just repent, He would save them. He wanted to show them mercy, but they ignored Him right on up to the point where they were carried away into captivity by their enemies. The happy part was knowing that God loved them enough to delay their punishment until everyone had heard the warnings and had a chance to repent. He loved them enough, that even when the punishment was carried out, He took care of the few who were faithful and blessed them anyway. Wow!

What a God! I think the prophet Micah sums it up best in his book. Micah 7:18-20 says, "Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of His inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our iniquities into the depth of the sea. You will be true to Jacob, and show mercy to Abraham, as you pledged on oath to our fathers in days long ago."

God does not want to punish us! He does not want to send any of His children to captivity in Hell! God wanted to show His love for us so much, that He died for us in the form of His Son, Jesus, the Christ. He wants to show us His mercy and grace. He wants us to listen to the warnings. He wants those who have received Him to share the warnings and the good news of Grace to others. I pray that those who deny Jesus and continue to ignore the warnings wake up and accept His offers of mercy before it's to late.

That's My King!!

This video was put together to honor the late S.M. Lockridge, who once presented an incredible message, describing our God and who He is. Though God can't be described with just words, this is as close as you can get this side of Heaven.



And now a message from Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee...



Enjoy!!
Merry Christmas