ALL IS QUIET ON NEW YEAR'S DAY

In a few days, we celebrate the beginning of a new year. We sometime look at this as a symbolic wiping of the slate, clearing away all that came along in the previous year, and beginning again with a fresh outlook and a promise on our lips to do better this time around.

Le 23:27 "The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. Hold a sacred assembly and deny yourselves, and present an offering made to the LORD by fire.
Le 23:28 Do no work on that day, because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the LORD your God.
Le 25:9 Then have the trumpet sounded everywhere on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement sound the trumpet throughout your land.


This is the way God wants us to celebrate the new year.
Not with empty “resolutions” that we break almost as soon as we make them, but with atonement which is a reconciliation between God and man, such as forgiveness and repentance of sin.

So, got any resolutions for this year?

SUNDAY FUNNIES

IN THE PRESENCE OF THE LORD

Acts 17: 22 – 34


You here them everyday. Stories of people who felt an unknown presence in their lives, just when they needed it. Not all of these people are Christian, and not all of them know that there is a good.
Their stories usually end with the phrases, “I knew it was going to be alright”, “It was like a miracle or something”. At this time of year we may see on TV a story of a “Christmas Miracle”, where something, or someone, unknown has changed the lives of an individual or family.
In Athens, Paul was looking at the places and articles of worship, when he found a small shrine dedicated to an unknown god.

22 Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: "Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious.
23 For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you.

Paul went on to proclaim the Glory of God to all standing there, and as we often find today, most scoffed and walked away, while a small group wanted to know more.
Like I've said in the past, everybody wants to know about a god. Even the Atheists, and Secular Humanists know and fear Him. They know that once their own members have children, these people have a tendency to leave the movement in search of the presence of God in their lives.

So while many search for and feel His presence when they need him, few remain to seek him further.

Today is the eve of the day we achieved victory. As the book of Isaiah tell us, unto us a child is born.
That child was the living embodiment of the living God. Sent to redeem the world. So today, and whenever we get a chance, we should tell the people who tell us of the “miracle” times in their lives, of the one true God, that “unknown god” that Paul described to the men of Athens.

Paul said that God is at work among people of all nations “so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:27-28).
We should be alert for the Lord’s presence where we least expect to see Him. Jesus may invite Himself to any Christmas party. After all, it’s His birthday.

INVISIBLE?

John 14: 5 – 20


Seeing is believing. I must have heard that phrase a million times, maybe more, and I must admit I have taken it as a truth. Now comes the interesting bit. I believe in God, yet I have never seen Him. Some how these things don't seem to add up.
I know that I have felt the presence of God in my life, and have seen the changes that he has made in the lives of others. I guess what I am saying is that I, if not all of us, have the same feelings and experiences the Apostles had.

5 Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?"
6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me.
7 If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him."
8 Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us."
9 Jesus answered: "Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

That whole seeing is believing thing just keeps raising its ugly head doesn't it?

We must remember that God is not like the “Invisible Man” from those old movies. He is not playing some great game of hide and seek, taking off his outer wrappings and disappearing from our sight.
We perceive that God is distant, far off, inaccessible, and hidden. But we need a God who is accessible, and we wonder how to have a meaningful relationship with Him.
We will never fully comprehend what God is like. Yet He Himself is accessible to us. In part, that is why Jesus came, to “show us the Father” and to bring us close to Him, because “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation”
Our God is an invisible God, beyond our limited comprehension. Thankfully, Jesus came to show us how near to us He really is. 

MIRACLES

Revelation 22: 1 – 5

1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb
2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.
4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.
5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.

December is a month when people celebrate miracles. The Jewish tradition of Hanukkah, the Holiday of Lights, commemorates the time when a small amount of oil lasted 8 days and kept the light in the temple from going out. And Christmas celebrates the coming of the “Light of the World,” God in human form, Jesus.
A miracle is generally thought of as something that contradicts nature. But a true miracle is the introduction of God’s supernatural power into our world in a way that suspends the laws of physics as we understand them.

God is always in control. It is rather odd, don't you think, that December is the month chosen to celebrate miracles of the old, and new testaments about the coming, and establishment, of the light of God?
In the secular world, song writers and poets, have used the months not only to show the passing of a year, but also the stages of life, (Ever heard about a May, - December relationship? )
when we reach the December of our lives, we look forward to our coming time with The Lord. Even those who are not saved hope for the next life in heaven.
Deep down we all want to think of the end of death disease and pain.
So isn't it cool that God, who understands all our needs and desires, should put a book filled with such comfort at the end of his word to us. Yeah I know Revelation can be kind scary too with all it's prophecy of the end to come, but it is there as a warning, a last gasp plea as it were for us to repent and to come to Jesus.

Let's enjoy our December celebrations. Let us also remember the miracles behind them.
Now that advent is over, I can truly say-

MERRY CHRISTMAS.

SUNDAY FUNNIES

PRAYING FOR OTHERS

Ephesians 1: 15 – 23

I have a daily thing, where I set the clock on my I touch to ring every hour. This give me the opportunity to pray for those people around me. Rarely do I pray for myself in these times. Now I don't mean to be speaking pridefully by telling you this, all I want to do is show by example what Paul was talking about in his prayer for the Ephesians.

16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.
17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.

Doing things like this(praying for others) recharges our batteries. There is an old saying in AA , If you need help to get through the day, help someone else. You'd be surprised how well this principle works. God works in many and mysterious ways, through people and other supernatural ways, and knowing that the steps and principles of 12 step recovery programs are Biblically blessed, I can't help but think that the simple deed of praying for others kinda helps us too.
(That was a long sentence)

18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,
19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength,
20 which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms,
21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.

God bless you .


I'll be praying for you.

HIDE AND SEEK

1 Corinthians 2: 6 – 16


One of my favorite games to play, when I was a small lad, was hide and seek. I liked to hide, but then my insecurities would take over if I wasn't found, and I would think that everyone else was off doing really really fun things without me.

Enough with my childhood neurosis.

What I really liked was to be it. I loved the sense of the hunt, the splendid anticipation of who I would be able to find first, and maybe gain the knowledge of a new place to hide for the next time around.
As I grew older I found that I liked to untie knots. What I mean is, I liked a good mystery. I liked trying to find the secret thing before it was revealed. In the 70's, there was a great TV show about a detective named Ellery Queen. On this show there was either a murder, robbery, or some crime to be solved. Just before the end of the show, the actor, who played Ellery,would look towards the camera and say; “You have all the clues. Have you figured it out yet”? Then the show went to commercial. The anticipation of wondering if I got it right, and with the right clues not just by dumb luck, just spurred me on.

6 We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.
7 No, we speak of God’s secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began.Secret wisdom? How delicious! Another knot to untie, another mystery to try and solve.
As Sherlock Holmes would say; “Come Watson. The game is afoot”!

God could have revealed to us all knowledge to us at once, but, where's the fun in that. I know that for myself, if it comes easy, it just doesn't have as much value than what I have to work for. But, God chose to reveal himself gradually because he understands that about our nature, we value things more when we have to search and wait for them.

God is not playing a cruel game of hide-and-seek. He is allowing us to enjoy the process of discovering who He is and what He is up to in the universe. So don’t be discouraged over what you don’t know about God. Be excited about unwrapping all there is yet to discover.  

SUNDAY FUNNIES

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There have been changes to the posting section of this blogpage.

As soon as I figure out how to make the edits I need ,I will post again

THE OLD BLOCK RIDES AGAIN

This morning as I pondered a way to vent my rage and just be humerous, I decided to become a blogger again.
So if you are interested in my mindless wanderings, go to;

http://ranchoderoadblock.blogspot.com/

PLEASE FOLLOW THIS LINK

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKk9rv2hUfA

SIN SICK AND WEARY

Mathew 1: 18 – 25

I read this in ODB this morning;

As we approach Christmas, it’s good to remember why Jesus was born. The Son of God did not come to establish a nostalgic, family-oriented, commercially successful holiday. The angel told Joseph: “[Mary] will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21).

Other than that scene from a Charlie Brown Christmas, I think the above statement is something that must be passed along. We need to bring the message of relief from our sins.
I've been trying for a while to determine just exactly what sin is. I know that according to Paul, we all suffer from this condition and fall short of the glory of God. I also know that if we try to look up a definition, it seems to be a willful act. Looking into it further still, we find that he word sin, in the new testament, comes from the Greek word hamartia which means to miss the target. I think I like that one the best.
I used to play darts and I developed a good eye for the bullseye. Just like all the good target shooters, I had a way to center myself, aim at the target, and throw the dart at the same speed, with the same arc and spin, every time. Because of the mechanics of what produced a bullseye in the past, it was assumed by me that I should hit the bullseye every time, yet I would miss more than I hit.
Why? My routine never varied. I was a dart throwing machine, yet I would miss the target. So, to win all my games, I needed someone to change all my misses to bullseyes, just like I need a savior today to forgive my sins as if they didn't even happen.
We are created to each be the apple of God's eye. He loves us and wants to spend eternity with us.
The problem is that sin separates us from God, so he sent His Son to save us, and remove our sin by His sacrifice.
With His help, it's like we hit the target every single time.

He came into this world a babe,

This world that He Himself had made;

He came to do the Father’s will,

That ended on dark Calvary’s hill. —Newstrom

Jesus came to earth to repair our sin-damaged lives.

THE BOSS IS COMING.

Joshua 7:16 – 25

There is a very silly bumper sticker out there that reads;
“Jesus is coming”! “Look busy”.
Rather foolish, but it gets a sad point across.
Today, many computer games come with what is called the “Boss button”. While plating a game at work, if there is someone that you don't want to know you're playing a game comes near, press the boss button and the computer screen immediately changes from the game to something that looks work related.
We always like to hide our secret sin from other people, and if we think that we have done a good enough job, we are also hiding that sin from God.
Achan was like that, hiding his secret under his tent.

19 Then Joshua said to Achan, "My son, give glory to the LORD, the God of Israel, and give him the praise. Tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me."
20 Achan replied, "It is true! I have sinned against the LORD, the God of Israel. This is what I have done:
21 When I saw in the plunder a beautiful robe from Babylonia, two hundred shekels of silver and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. They are hidden in the ground inside my tent, with the silver underneath."

These were items that Achan, and his family, could have used, if they knew what they had. But, Achan had disobeyed God, and his sin was made public by Joshua.
The punishment may have been a bit excessive, but we do know that God was instructing his people about his holiness, and our need to obey him.

24 Then Joshua, together with all Israel, took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the robe, the gold wedge, his sons and daughters, his cattle, donkeys and sheep, his tent and all that he had, to the Valley of Achor.
25 Joshua said, "Why have you brought this trouble on us? The LORD will bring trouble on you today." Then all Israel stoned him, and after they had stoned the rest, they burned them.

If you’ve been disobedient, it’s time to come out of hiding. God is lovingly calling you and offering His cleansing, forgiveness, and restoration.

SUNDAY FUNNIES

WALKING WITH GOD

Genesis 5: 18 – 24

18 When Jared had lived 162 years, he became the father of Enoch.
19 And after he became the father of Enoch, Jared lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters.
20 Altogether, Jared lived 962 years, and then he died.
21 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah.
22 And after he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters.
23 Altogether, Enoch lived 365 years.
24 Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.

I love those little tidbits that God put in the Bible where out of nowhere, while I'm just trying to get through some genealogy, up pops something with great significance that I had previously missed.
The first time that happened was with the prayer of Jabez, and I thought; “ Wow isn't that cool”.
To me, there is great wisdom throughout the Bible, but these little biographies are like finding “Easter eggs” filled with goodies.
Time after time we are heard to proclaim, state, or otherwise say, that we walk with God. Or, that we are working on our walk. Even that we are walking our walk. But, what does that mean?
Webster's says that walk comes from the old English meaning; to roll, toss, knead (as in bread), or move about. To move about in a visible form. To move along by foot.
To pursue a course of action, or way of life.

Now there's some stuff we can work with!

Walking isn't just a form of exercise or the ability to move about. That whole tossing, rolling, and kneading thing sounds like the “sparks are going to fly” Iron sharpens Iron theory. While trying to get ourselves into relationship with God, we are going to suffer our bumps and bruises along the way.
So to be said to be walking with God, as Enoch was, must have meant that he stuck out like a sore thumb among the people of that time. And the fact that before and after Enoch's biography people were recorded as dieing at the end of their lives, while he was said to be taken away by God, and was no more, is kind of significant in a scary good kind of way. So much so that He was singled out for his faith in God.
Wouldn't it be nice if it was said of us that we walk with God, by the people who witness us in our daily lives?

THINGS THAT MAKE YOU GO, HMMM.

Isaiah 53: 1 – 6

Okay, a quick show of hands.
What does Jesus look like?

The truth is we really don't know. All those pictures we see of him every day on the walls of a church like Jesus knocking on the door, or Jesus praying at a rock, or even Jesus with the little children, those images that are burned into our minds were painted in the 40's.
Even the people who were with him every day, didn't take the time to tell us what he looked like.
The only clues that we have come from the book of Isaiah.

2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

To me, that doesn't sound like what I would expect to find in the King of kings.

Did you ever watch the lost in space episode where two aliens land on the planet that the Robinson's are stranded, one was very handsome while the other was quite ugly?
Everyone thought that the handsome one was filled with truth, honesty, and power, and the other evil. Just because of the way they looked. Yet in the end, the reverse was true. The ugly one was good and the handsome one was the evil bad guy.
That's the problem with us as a race. We judge people by their looks, and we are attracted to pretty people and have a tendency to follow them, just look at our latest presidential election. McCain was described constantly as old, while Obama was said to be the coolest guy at the party.
So, what does God do? He sends His Son to us so that we will be attracted by the message He brings, not His outward appearance.
But, the next time Jesus comes, there will be no doubt. He will return as the sovereign King of kings and Lord of lords.

A WIN'S A WIN

Philippians 1: 12 – 21

15 It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill.
16 The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel.
17 The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains.
18 But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice,

I should say up front that I love sports. If there is a game on TV, I'll probably watch it, especially if it's baseball or football. In sports there is an attitude that it doesn't matter how a team ends up with a win. A win is a win, and it doesn't matter if the team wins well or wins ugly.
Winning well would be the team playing even with, or dominating the other team, while winning ugly would be a poorly played game by one or both teams.

Paul is talking about the same thing here. To him it doesn't matter how or even why the Gospel of Jesus Christ is preached, as long as the word is brought to the people. We have to remember that He is in prison for the Gospel, in Rome, and that most people thought that keeping him in chains would prevent the spread of Christianity. By that time, it was too late. The Gospel was being taught. The motive of people who brought the word may not have lined up exactly with the way Paul did it, but his only care was that the good news was taught to the people all over the world.

12 Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.
13 As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ.
14 Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.

When it get to the bottom line, it doesn't matter if the Pats win big, or just squeak out a victory in the last minute. It also doesn't matter why we hear bout Jesus as long as we do.

20 I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.
21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

JOYFUL

2 Corinthians 4: 8 – 18

Ps 30: 5 For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.

Don't you just love that verse? It gives us hope that whatever is plaguing us is short lived compared to the joy we will experience in eternity.
The first time I saw the above verse was in a meeting room in a rehab. They used it there as an example of living one day at a time. How short sighted was that? Yet I fell for it as I didn't know the Lord in those days.
Now we are not talking about Psalm 30, we are dealing with what Paul said in 2 Corinthians. What is made very clear is that Paul's writing says the same thing as the Psalm, I guess that's because Paul didn't have the New Testament to preach from, after all it was he who wrote the letters to Corinth.

8 We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair;
9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.

Just like in that rehab, Paul shows us that although we are down, but not out, beaten and bloody, but not dead yet. It seems that wherever we look, there are things ready to pounce on us with out warning.
Yet Paul reminds us that all these things are temporary in the face of eternity.

16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.

I know in my life that there are times when I just want to lay down and cry. The pain and discomfort become too much, all my worries seem to overwhelm me, and I want to cry out, to complain, to cry foul, and feel sorry for myself.
I forget the teaching of the Bible as I am sure that many others do as well. For now, those of us who weep can dwell on hope instead of hopelessness and anticipation instead of sorrow. It may be nighttime in our hearts, but just ahead lies the dawn of eternity. And with it, God promises the endless joy of heavenly morning.