Wednesday, December 4, 2013
I am back after not writing for almost two years
What is wrong with me? Its that stage of life I guess. My kids keep me very busy and on my toes with little time to write anymore. However, I am planning on making a better effort to write in this blog more often. I believe writing is very good for the soul and the mind. One must put one's thoughts down on paper and try to convey ideas as much as possible. I hope to have a very good topic to post soon. If there is anyone out there listening, I will be back soon. Jason
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Final Approach
It's amazing to me the arrogance some have in their attempts to explain/deny the GOD of the Bible. If you have been on YOUTUBE lately and look up atheism in any sort of way you will see plenty of harsh videos mocking the God of the Bible. Everything from morality, creation, laws, marriage, etc. There is nothing about God the atheistic community will not attack. They say that the God of the Bible does not exist, yet they go out of their way to mock, ridicule, deny the maker of the universe. This is puzzling to me, yet not surprising. I have gotten over being offended by them. I have turned the feelings of offense to feelings of sadness. I have also come to the conclusion through what the Bible speaks about, deafness and blindness. If you truly did not believe in something, you would not waste your time with it, it seems. This fascination with mocking is peculiar. And that tells me this. They believe God is really there, yet, they do like what He tells them. They do not listen and they twist His words so that it excuses their actions, words, thought life, etc. It truly is sad.
I had a thought this morning after reading in JOB. God loves us. Yet, He will not answer to us. Ever. He is not under our control, jurisdiction, or thumb. He is not surprised by those who choose to mock Him. He keeps on loving and is sovereign. IF you wish to find God, go to the poor, the homeless, the needy, there he will be. Go to drug rehab, go to the sick, those in prison, those suffering, there you will find Him. You wont find him in University classrooms. You wont find Him at political campaigns. You wont find Him sipping Tea with the rich and famous, or cruising on a yacht with high highfalutin. God is on the ground with the poor and needy. To me this is so comforting. He not only meets us where we are at (and this takes humbling ourselves completely before Him) but He suffers with us. You will find God in orphanages, funeral homes, underground movements in China and other countries. God is not out to prove Himself. If looking in the mirror is not enough proof that God exists for you, then you better rethink. This is one of the most wonderful things about God. He is who He is. Not shaken. Not poked and prodded to anger. He is steady, unfailing, unmovable. He is the rock of my salvation. So keep it up atheists, keep mocking. What comes around, goes around. Every word, thought, action, is subject to God and in the end He will judge right and true.
So, don't let those who hate God get you down. Remember to always have an answer for the truth, and do it with respect and love. The Bible never says to give in or prove anything, it says to give an answer for the hope you have. If people don't like the truth, that is between them and God. And God is unchanging and is who He is.
I had a thought this morning after reading in JOB. God loves us. Yet, He will not answer to us. Ever. He is not under our control, jurisdiction, or thumb. He is not surprised by those who choose to mock Him. He keeps on loving and is sovereign. IF you wish to find God, go to the poor, the homeless, the needy, there he will be. Go to drug rehab, go to the sick, those in prison, those suffering, there you will find Him. You wont find him in University classrooms. You wont find Him at political campaigns. You wont find Him sipping Tea with the rich and famous, or cruising on a yacht with high highfalutin. God is on the ground with the poor and needy. To me this is so comforting. He not only meets us where we are at (and this takes humbling ourselves completely before Him) but He suffers with us. You will find God in orphanages, funeral homes, underground movements in China and other countries. God is not out to prove Himself. If looking in the mirror is not enough proof that God exists for you, then you better rethink. This is one of the most wonderful things about God. He is who He is. Not shaken. Not poked and prodded to anger. He is steady, unfailing, unmovable. He is the rock of my salvation. So keep it up atheists, keep mocking. What comes around, goes around. Every word, thought, action, is subject to God and in the end He will judge right and true.
So, don't let those who hate God get you down. Remember to always have an answer for the truth, and do it with respect and love. The Bible never says to give in or prove anything, it says to give an answer for the hope you have. If people don't like the truth, that is between them and God. And God is unchanging and is who He is.
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Plug your ears
Recently, I got in an argument over the fundamentals of the Christian faith with an atheist. Well, the person claimed to be an atheist, but one really never knows with them. They say they don't believe in a god, or gods, yet atheism is a belief. That is a subject for another time. We were discussing a very personal issue regarding the right to life. I gave this person my view, which, was based on the biblical text. My view is, that life is absolutely precious, and that God knew us before He knit us in his womb (Jer 1:5). This says that before we were even thought of by our parents, before even the beginning of time itself that God knew us! This is a wonderful thought. I continued with my view on life and stated that its not HOW we were conceived, but THAT we were conceived. Any idea or plan to cancel out a life from human terms is wrong, period. God is the author of life, the giver and taker. The only exception to this problem would be the obvious risk to the mother involved.(insert here any situation where you must choose one life over another) If it comes down to mother or child to save, you do the best you can based on prayer and support. But prayer being #1. I find that in hard times going to God FIRST is key, not 2nd or 3rd, but FIRST. It makes sense, why? Because He is life, the author knows what to do. We don't. And, in any tough situation as I am sure you can make out from the scenario above, we are called by God to be over comers, to not let the pain and suffering of this world destroy us, or even consume us, but to call on the Almighty to hold us and see us through even though ugly and horrific things that can happen to us. Jesus is awesome, and He suffers with us, feels our deepest pains and sorrows, and gives us life and joy even in the midst of tremendous sorrow. He is the only one I can trust my life with.
So, back to the subject of plugging your ears. This person I was having a discussion with called me "sick" and "distorted", said that if I don't radically change my view about God they would never speak to me again. They even said that they would not want to be in heaven with me if that was my view of God. Interesting how people can conjure up "their" own idea of what heaven is. God calls us to be over comers, not of our own doing, but with Him in control. This is applied to all things that we as human beings confront. Think of the ugliest situation or problem that could happen to you. With God, it can be overcome. This does not mean it will be easy, or even something that you wont have to live with the rest of your natural life. Matter of fact, Jesus tells us that "we will have trouble in this world, WILL, but take heart, I have overcome the world." It does not say we are entitled to safety, we are not entitled to be free of crimes, natural disasters, you name it. We are all subject to pain and suffering. The book of Job is a great book to understand suffering. The key is to allow God to suffer with us, to put our trust in Him, to see the future and to focus on what He has in store. This life is but a blip on the screen, and to understand that God can and will overcome.
Reminds me of the story of Stephen in the book of Acts. Stephen was not afraid to tell those listening what the problem was and who to turn to. They rejected what Stephen said, gnashed their teeth, basically put their fingers in their ears and turned to hate. Stephen was stoned for speaking the truth in love. Fortunately, I was not stoned, otherwise I would not be typing this right now. But it was clear to me that the truth really stings people and they hate God. Stephen, before he died, saw Jesus on His throne just before he died. What does that tell us? That God is in control, that we are in His hands, and though many may want to crush us for our belief in the risen Savior, that Jesus has the final say, and to put our hope and trust in the LIVING GOD. Stephen is a hero of our faith. I say "is" because Stephen is in the real world right now, we are in a twisted and fallen world. Stephen is in glory, made perfect by our true hero, Jesus Christ.
A couple of thoughts. People believe things that are easy and surface ridden, they typically follow the easy path that society tells them. Its easy to believe things that make you comfortable, therefore, it must be correct. God calls us to a higher standard. When you hear something, digest it, compare it to scripture, pray over it, try to understand who said it and their motives, and really think the problem through to its logical conclusion. If you don't, you will fall prey to ease and comfort, which, disguised, will ultimately ruin you and make you callous to the truth. Lets be people who are open minded to what God has for us, not to what a sick and distorted world has for us, because everything is meaningless when in the context of a atheist worldview. Jesus is the ultimate answer to life's challenges. Why? Because Jesus is life itself.
Jay
So, back to the subject of plugging your ears. This person I was having a discussion with called me "sick" and "distorted", said that if I don't radically change my view about God they would never speak to me again. They even said that they would not want to be in heaven with me if that was my view of God. Interesting how people can conjure up "their" own idea of what heaven is. God calls us to be over comers, not of our own doing, but with Him in control. This is applied to all things that we as human beings confront. Think of the ugliest situation or problem that could happen to you. With God, it can be overcome. This does not mean it will be easy, or even something that you wont have to live with the rest of your natural life. Matter of fact, Jesus tells us that "we will have trouble in this world, WILL, but take heart, I have overcome the world." It does not say we are entitled to safety, we are not entitled to be free of crimes, natural disasters, you name it. We are all subject to pain and suffering. The book of Job is a great book to understand suffering. The key is to allow God to suffer with us, to put our trust in Him, to see the future and to focus on what He has in store. This life is but a blip on the screen, and to understand that God can and will overcome.
Reminds me of the story of Stephen in the book of Acts. Stephen was not afraid to tell those listening what the problem was and who to turn to. They rejected what Stephen said, gnashed their teeth, basically put their fingers in their ears and turned to hate. Stephen was stoned for speaking the truth in love. Fortunately, I was not stoned, otherwise I would not be typing this right now. But it was clear to me that the truth really stings people and they hate God. Stephen, before he died, saw Jesus on His throne just before he died. What does that tell us? That God is in control, that we are in His hands, and though many may want to crush us for our belief in the risen Savior, that Jesus has the final say, and to put our hope and trust in the LIVING GOD. Stephen is a hero of our faith. I say "is" because Stephen is in the real world right now, we are in a twisted and fallen world. Stephen is in glory, made perfect by our true hero, Jesus Christ.
A couple of thoughts. People believe things that are easy and surface ridden, they typically follow the easy path that society tells them. Its easy to believe things that make you comfortable, therefore, it must be correct. God calls us to a higher standard. When you hear something, digest it, compare it to scripture, pray over it, try to understand who said it and their motives, and really think the problem through to its logical conclusion. If you don't, you will fall prey to ease and comfort, which, disguised, will ultimately ruin you and make you callous to the truth. Lets be people who are open minded to what God has for us, not to what a sick and distorted world has for us, because everything is meaningless when in the context of a atheist worldview. Jesus is the ultimate answer to life's challenges. Why? Because Jesus is life itself.
Jay
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Free will?
Today on the bus I was contemplating the issue of free will. The reason why? Actually, about a year and a half ago I thought I would start a dialogue with my co-workers about this issue of free will. This is really a hot button topic with people. It is amazing what people say. And today it came up again without my doing. One of my coworkers states we have no free will. I disagree. But, it is not a completely black and white issue. (nothing really is it seems these days!) His charge is that free will does not exist because someone could kill you, therefore taking away your free will, therefore you now have lost your free will. Your dead, no free will!Ha ha.True I guess. However:
I believe we have a will. I believe God (Jesus) gives us a will. We are given the opportunity to make choices in this life. (libertarian free will)" Libertarian free will is the ability either to do something or not. Free agency is the ability to do whatever a person wants to do (apart from constraining causes). This difference is not a small one. For example, do non-Christians have the inherent ability either to choose to trust Christ or not? Is such a decision ultimately dependent on their will? "
Is our will totally and completely free? The answer is no. Of course not. We are not in total control, therefore we do not have total free will. My will can be taken from me, by someone else's will. .I have free will in that it is close to the hip for lack of a better phrase. I can choose what to eat, what to type, what to say, etc. I have lots of little choices, and lots of big choices. But total free will is not possible with humans. Its limited in a sense, but the limits are good limits. I have the capacity to do a lot of good, but I also have the capacity to do a lot of bad. God has set it up so that humans can make choices that affect them and others around them,but not such total free will as that which He (God) can't control. God is amazing in His ability to set up such a scenario. God gives us the ability to choose Him or not choose Him. This is the ultimate choice in life. This is the question that is the most important for everyone to answer.
"Will means the function of choosing. God is absolutely sovereign. He "works all things according to the counsel of his will" (Ephesians 1:11). He does whatever he wants, and no one can stop him (Psalm 115:3; Daniel 4:34-35).
Humans are morally responsible, which requires that they be free. There is no biblical reason that God cannot cause real human choices. The Bible grounds human accountability in God's authority as our creator and judge, not in libertarian free will. "
We have to remember that we are not like God. We are created in His image, but we are not Him. He can do whatever he wants! Except sin of course. This is impossible for him, since He is love, the definition of love. He cannot be unfaithful to what He is.
There are causes which limit our free will, constraints, but we do have the ability to make a choice for or against God. We do have the ability to choose to love someone or not.
Anyways, this issue is a hot button issue, and has much more to it then what I wrote. I have to say that after about 5 minutes of processing this issue again today on the bus I fell asleep and woke up 30 minutes later to my destination. I freely fell asleep and freely woke up, freely leaving the bus, freely driving my car to freely get gas, so I could freely go home and freely eat supper with my freely chosen children and freely chosen wife who I freely asked to marry me. However, I believe she did not freely say yes to my marriage proposal. That is where God stepped in and coerced her to marry me. Why? Because He knows more than I do. Without her I would be a lost puppy. Amen. Thank God for a free-not so free-will!!!
I believe we have a will. I believe God (Jesus) gives us a will. We are given the opportunity to make choices in this life. (libertarian free will)" Libertarian free will is the ability either to do something or not. Free agency is the ability to do whatever a person wants to do (apart from constraining causes). This difference is not a small one. For example, do non-Christians have the inherent ability either to choose to trust Christ or not? Is such a decision ultimately dependent on their will? "
Is our will totally and completely free? The answer is no. Of course not. We are not in total control, therefore we do not have total free will. My will can be taken from me, by someone else's will. .I have free will in that it is close to the hip for lack of a better phrase. I can choose what to eat, what to type, what to say, etc. I have lots of little choices, and lots of big choices. But total free will is not possible with humans. Its limited in a sense, but the limits are good limits. I have the capacity to do a lot of good, but I also have the capacity to do a lot of bad. God has set it up so that humans can make choices that affect them and others around them,but not such total free will as that which He (God) can't control. God is amazing in His ability to set up such a scenario. God gives us the ability to choose Him or not choose Him. This is the ultimate choice in life. This is the question that is the most important for everyone to answer.
"Will means the function of choosing. God is absolutely sovereign. He "works all things according to the counsel of his will" (Ephesians 1:11). He does whatever he wants, and no one can stop him (Psalm 115:3; Daniel 4:34-35).
Humans are morally responsible, which requires that they be free. There is no biblical reason that God cannot cause real human choices. The Bible grounds human accountability in God's authority as our creator and judge, not in libertarian free will. "
We have to remember that we are not like God. We are created in His image, but we are not Him. He can do whatever he wants! Except sin of course. This is impossible for him, since He is love, the definition of love. He cannot be unfaithful to what He is.
There are causes which limit our free will, constraints, but we do have the ability to make a choice for or against God. We do have the ability to choose to love someone or not.
Anyways, this issue is a hot button issue, and has much more to it then what I wrote. I have to say that after about 5 minutes of processing this issue again today on the bus I fell asleep and woke up 30 minutes later to my destination. I freely fell asleep and freely woke up, freely leaving the bus, freely driving my car to freely get gas, so I could freely go home and freely eat supper with my freely chosen children and freely chosen wife who I freely asked to marry me. However, I believe she did not freely say yes to my marriage proposal. That is where God stepped in and coerced her to marry me. Why? Because He knows more than I do. Without her I would be a lost puppy. Amen. Thank God for a free-not so free-will!!!
Monday, January 23, 2012
Stupid Bowl
So the Super Bowl is set. I remember two years ago the pain of losing to the Saints in OT. The 49ers blew it yesterday and are feeling it today. The Ravens booted one wide. No fun. A guy at work is a big SF fan. I remember 2 years ago when he thought he would rip the Vikings and rub it in when we lost. Well, all I have to say is what comes around goes around. Now he is feeling the same way I did. Teaches me to at least try and shut my mouth about sports.I kept my mouth shut today and avoided my coworker just so I wouldn't rub it in and anger him. I was successful. Not a peep. Boy did I want to let him have it though!
All sports teams do is disappoint about 99% of the time. Only one team can stand at the end of the year, so no point in boasting. Its hard not to rub it in on people when it comes to sports, especially football for some reason. Must be the male ego, I don't know. So in essence, I guess it really should be called the stupid bowl, because it really means a whole lot of nothing and people get "stupid" about their team, especially me. Fights break out, people get angry with each other, and think of all the money people spend on sportswear, tvs, tickets, etc. For what? The right to do it all again next year. If you think about it, it really is quite stupid.
P.S. I will quit watching when the Vikings win the big one! Ah, hmm. Yea right.
All sports teams do is disappoint about 99% of the time. Only one team can stand at the end of the year, so no point in boasting. Its hard not to rub it in on people when it comes to sports, especially football for some reason. Must be the male ego, I don't know. So in essence, I guess it really should be called the stupid bowl, because it really means a whole lot of nothing and people get "stupid" about their team, especially me. Fights break out, people get angry with each other, and think of all the money people spend on sportswear, tvs, tickets, etc. For what? The right to do it all again next year. If you think about it, it really is quite stupid.
P.S. I will quit watching when the Vikings win the big one! Ah, hmm. Yea right.
Friday, January 20, 2012
Here are the lyrics to "Morning Star" by an old band from the early 1990's. Great tune.
MORNING STAR
Hear the tale of a fallen people
Destined to wander their broken land
Their eyes are vacant, full of empty meaning
What they're missing they just don't understand
(Chorus 1)
Beyond the dark horizon
Out where the people are crying
A Morningstar will be rising
Rising to show us the way
Long ago a secret treasure was given
To change the heart of every woman and man
But somehow the treasure was forgotten
It lies buried underneath the shifting sand
(Chorus 2)
Beyond the dark horizon
Out where the people are crying
A Morningstar will be rising
Rising up with the bright dawn of healing
Rising up to show us the way
Our eyes are not seeing
Our hearts are not feeling
We want to believe now
Come save us from ourselves
(Chorus 3)
Beyond the dark horizon
Out where the people are dying
The Son of man will be rising
The glory of the Lord will be shining
Shatter the dark horizon
Out where the people are crying
A Morningstar will be rising
Rising to show us the way
[ Lyrics from:
MORNING STAR
Hear the tale of a fallen people
Destined to wander their broken land
Their eyes are vacant, full of empty meaning
What they're missing they just don't understand
(Chorus 1)
Beyond the dark horizon
Out where the people are crying
A Morningstar will be rising
Rising to show us the way
Long ago a secret treasure was given
To change the heart of every woman and man
But somehow the treasure was forgotten
It lies buried underneath the shifting sand
(Chorus 2)
Beyond the dark horizon
Out where the people are crying
A Morningstar will be rising
Rising up with the bright dawn of healing
Rising up to show us the way
Our eyes are not seeing
Our hearts are not feeling
We want to believe now
Come save us from ourselves
(Chorus 3)
Beyond the dark horizon
Out where the people are dying
The Son of man will be rising
The glory of the Lord will be shining
Shatter the dark horizon
Out where the people are crying
A Morningstar will be rising
Rising to show us the way
[ Lyrics from:
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
white out
I am not sure why some of my text is whiting out. Irritating. Sorry about that. I will attempt to fix the problem.
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