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Posts Tagged ‘Jesus’

It’s Not Fair!

Posted in christmas, WONDER, tagged Angels, baby, chosen, Elizabeth, God chosen, importance, it's not fair, Jesus, Luke 1, Mary, Son of God, Travelling, virgin mary on December 16, 2013| 1 Comment »

God knows what He is doing, both now and always.

For instance, He knew what He was doing when Mary was chosen to be the mother of the Christ child … and not me.

Mary was “highly favored” (Luke 1:28), I on the other hand am … extra human in regards to my use of phrase like, “that’s not fair.”

If I were to have walked in the shoes of Mary, and been visited by an angel (that is big enough as it is) who told me that I, a virgin, was to be inseminated by the Holy Spirit and give birth to the Son of God (and not even have the honor of choosing the name of my firstborn) I would not have replied, “I am the Lord’s servant, may your word to me be fulfilled” (Luke 1:38).

Then off she goes to visit her cousin Elizabeth … if it were me, my intent would have been to flee the realities that were going on, and to bury my head in the sand, as the great ostriches do to avoid their problems. But no, there is no avoiding reality from her first words, when Elizabeth’s pre-born boy decides to do cartwheels at the sound of her voice.

And the unfair things did not stop there! After Joseph got his angelic visit, and he hoped on board, they had to head travel to be counted in the census that Caesar decided was necessary. So off the pair trod, Mary VERY pregnant, and the two undoubtedly still confused.

Then, upon arrival at their destination of Bethlehem, there is not a room left for them to find refuge, and for their baby to be born.

At this point I would have been looking up at those shiny stars and saying, “really God? Really? This IS YOUR son, could we at least have a place to bring Him into this world?”

God knew what He is doing, then and now. He does not ask any more of us than we can handle, and being the mother to the Christ child would definitely be more than I could handle.

I remember being a young teenager and saying to my God-loving grandmother, that ‘other’ denomination puts too much emphasis on Mary (parroting words I had heard, rather than what my own heart and brain deemed to be true). My grandmother, uncharacteristically firm and pointed in her reply to her only granddaughter said, “and we do not emphasize her value enough! If God chose her to give birth and raise His Son, she must have been a very special young woman.”

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When Your Circumstances Are Too Far Gone

Posted in WONDER, tagged difficulties, give up, Hopelessness, Jarius, Jesus, Prayer on July 7, 2013| Leave a Comment »

As I read the following post, by Kristen Strong, I felt I were hearing words and thoughts that have been my own at various times, concerning various relationships and situations of life. I think we all can relate to what she has communicated.

We have all had those hopeless thoughts, those hopeless moments, those hopeless seasons when our view of the future is hidden by a black veil. Moments when all hope seems lost.

In the following post, from (in)courage, Kristen reminds us of the hope that is always available to us … and it’s truly not a bother.

“I make my way to the bathroom after yet another frustrating conversation. I shut the door and lean hard on the pedestal sink as I look at myself in the mirror. Weary words swirl like smoke around me,

Why must this relationship be so difficult?

Why can’t it look different?

And really, why do I even bother?

I close my eyes, open them again. I wish for my daughter’s magic wand and a fairytale fix to this real life mess. After all, there’s not a chance in the world things will ever change. We’re at a dead-end country lane, and all we can do is back up and travel the same gravel over and over.

It’s too far gone, too hope-gone.

My attitude resembles that of the man from the house of Jairus as told in the book of Luke. Jairus, a synagogue ruler, pleads with Jesus to come to his house because his only daughter is dying. While Jesus and Jairus are still en route, a man from Jairus’ house meets them along the way and tells Jairus,

“Your daughter is dead…Don’t bother the teacher any more.” ~Luke 8:49

Jairus’ daughter died.

With circumstances too far gone, why bother Jesus?

My own frustration asks the same thing. This relationship is too hopeless, too broken, too dead. Why bother Jesus with this anyway? So I give up on my prayers, on Him.

And then I’m smacked upside the head with a startling reality: In cherry picked difficulties like this relationship, I’m an unbeliever. Or at least, I’m acting like one.

I know this is completely wrong because I know Christ can do all things. And indeed, He did with Jairus’ daughter.

Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed.”…he took her by the hand and said, “My child, get up!” Her spirit returned, and at once she stood up. ~Luke 8:50, 54

With one touch, Jesus raises the dead. With one sentence, He breathes new life into relationships.

So I don’t give up on prayer, but I give my prayers up to the throne of God, to the One who asks us to always pray and not lose heart.

We can’t always talk to people about God, but we can always talk to God about people. Don’t underestimate the real mountain-moving, ground-breaking, relationship-changing work your prayers can do to water cracked deserts, chisel granite hearts, and bridge broken relationships.

It is never too late for Jesus to move. Nothing is too far gone. We may not see healing at work on this earth, but we trust the Healer at work.

No, my broken relationship doesn’t look different, but my heart does – if only a little. It sees a new picture, one changing from hope-gone to Hope-dawn.”

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The Rocks Cry Out

Posted in WONDER, tagged absolute truth, ark of the covenant, Creation, Friedrich Nietzsche, god is dead, jerusalem, Jesus, King David, King David dancing, Luke 19, michal daughter of Saul, promise, Redemption, Thanksgiving, the rocks cry out on May 9, 2013| Leave a Comment »

“The essence of all beautiful art, all great art, is gratitude.”
Friedrich Nietzsche

When I read the above quote by Friedrich Nietzsche I was certain that it was an example of Luke 19:40, “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

4_dont-let-the-rocks-cry-out

Nietzsche, a brilliantly knowledgeable man who lived in Europe in the mid to late 1800’s, did not believe in absolute truth. Although born to parents who sought a life of faith with Christ (his father a Lutheran pastor), Friedrich believed that, “Christianity was from the beginning, essentially and fundamentally, life’s nausea and disgust with life, merely concealed behind, masked by, dressed up as, faith in “another” or “better” life (Nietzsche’s The Birth of Tragedy). An atheist most of his life, Nietzsche is probably most known for the phrase, “God is dead,” which is included in a couple of his books.

The passage from Luke 19 is the story of Jesus entering into the city of Jerusalem on a donkey (much as his mother who rode into Bethlehem on one, carrying Him in her womb). The people thought that He would fulfill the hope that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once (v. 11).

As He came close to the city people were shouting”

“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!”

“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” (v.38)

It is then that the Pharisees said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”

They did not get it. Although, like Nietzsche ,they were probably very well educated, knowledgeable men, probably even men who were raised with the law, and the stories of generations past, they did not believe that Jesus was indeed who He said He was. They thought that the crowd, no doubt a large and loud crowd, were claiming Jesus as the royalty that the Pharisees did not believe was king.

They saw Jesus as a man, they did not see him as their Savior.

It reminds me of when the ark was being brought into Jerusalem. David, like this crowd hundreds of years later, could not contain his excitement that the ark of the covenant was coming into his holy city, it was coming … home. As David removed his royal robes, Michal (Saul’s daughter) was disgusted by David’s ‘unkingly’ public behavior.

Michal,

like the priests,

like Nietzsche

could not see how worth celebrating

the God of the promise,

the God of redemption,

the God of Creation.

Why David danced as the ark entered Jerusalem, and the crowds of people sang as Jesus entered the same was

simply

completely

sincerely

thanksgiving.

May the beautiful and great art of our singing and dancing always be with thanksgiving!

Otherwise,

the rocks will cry out!

“The essence of all beautiful art, all great art, is gratitude.”
Friedrich Nietzsche

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Who Am I to Question God

Posted in WONDER, tagged all for jesus, all taken away, groaning, Jesus, Job, lost everything, Praise, robin mark, Sin, the brick testament, who am I to question god? on April 8, 2013| 1 Comment »

If you have been reading my blog for awhile, you know that I am mesmerized by the book and the person of Job.

I am in awe at how he suffered, and yet was still willing to offer up praise to his Creator:

“Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return.
The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away;
blessed be the name of the Lord.”
Job 1:21

Job was a good and righteous man. He had many earthly treasures, and all were taken from him. After losing all of the people, and things, and health that was good, he is tormented by his neighbors. They are certain that Job must have sinned terribly for God to have cursed himself in every part of his life, and they (like tabloid editors) want to know all of the details of his sin.

jb11_01p05-06

Job sits and listens to their speeches.

But, Job was real too. Although he never ceased to praise his Maker, he also had his pity party:

jb02_08

“I cry out to you, God, but you do not answer; I stand up, but you merely look at me.
You turn on me ruthlessly; with the might of your hand you attack me.
You snatch me up and drive me before the wind; you toss me about in the storm.
I know you will bring me down to death, to the place appointed for all the living.”
Job 30:20-23

In the end, God responds both to Job’s ‘friends’, as well as to Job’s groaning:

jb39_35

Then Job, in humility, and understanding of who is really in charge, replied to the Lord:

jb40_03-05

“I know that you can do all things;
    no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?’
    Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,
    things too wonderful for me to know.
Job 40:2-3

“The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part.”
Job 42:12

“All of my ambitions, hopes and plans
I surrender all of these, into Your hands
For it’s only in Your will that I am free”

* if you want to see more of the stories of the Bible told with similar images, check out The Brick Testament

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Were You There?

Posted in WONDER, tagged 1 Corinthians 2:7-8, crucifixion, Good Friday, Jesus, Johnny Cash, were you there? on March 29, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Were you there when they nailed him to the tree ? File_PassionMovie_NailHand-726x1024

Were you there when they nailed him to the tree ? Nailed-Feet

Were you there when they pierced him in the side ? pierced_side

Were you there when they laid him in the tomb ?

Oh, sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble

“we declare God’s wisdom,
a mystery that has been hidden
and that God destined for our glory before time began.
None of the rulers of this age understood it,
for if they had,
they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.”
1 Corinthians 2:7-8

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When Jesus Doesn’t Calm the Storm

Posted in Guest Post, WONDER, tagged get back in the boat, guest post, Jesus, look up, Matthew 14, peter, Roger Thorpe, sea of galilee, Storms, walking on water on February 3, 2013| Leave a Comment »

images I have been reading posts by Roger Tharpe for quite some time now. He is insightful and thorough in how he views what he reads in the Bible and how it relates to his life.

On his ‘About Me’ page, he says of himself, “My name is Roger Tharpe and I am a Christian. I love to blog and tell others about Christ in stories that could be shared by all.”

In this guest post, Roger writes of the story of Peter walking ~~taking a plunge~~ on the Sea of Galilee with Jesus, in What Do You Do When Jesus Doesn’t Calm the Storm?

We all have storms in our lives. Sometimes they are easily managed with relaxed breathing, and just taking it easy. Sometimes our confidence is shot, the skies are ominously dark, the waves seem aimed at us, and there is no steady hand for us to reach for in clear view … until we look up …

I highly recommend a read of this post, today.

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Can You Handle the Truth?

Posted in life, WONDER, tagged a few good men, can you handle the truth, conforming, Disciples, jack nicholson, Jesus, John 8:31-32, John Wycliffe, movie, the truth will set you free, Tom Cruise, Truth, truth will conquer, you can't handle the truth on October 18, 2012| Leave a Comment »

When I hear the word truth, that classic movie scene above is what comes to mind.

There is much to be said about truth.

Nations have risen and fallen over truth, and lies. Businesses have thrived and died with it’s presence and it’s lack. Homes have been fortified and divided over the same.

Truth is invisible, yet it’s absence stares a person in the face and sticks out it’s tongue.

For some telling the truth comes easy, and for others it is a most unnatural thing.

According to Dictionary.com, truth is “conformity with fact or reality.”
Maybe it is the conformity part that is such a struggle for some? If we have to conform to have truth, that sounds like we are giving in, rolling over, acquiescing. It sounds like truth is not something that comes naturally, but, instead comes from making a choice.

In John 8:31-32, Jesus said to a group who had claimed to believe in him, “if you stick with this, living out what I tell you, you are my disciples for sure. Then you will experience for yourselves the truth, and the truth will free you.”

Stick with this …
Living out what I tell you …

That sounds like he is telling them that they need to make a decision, that they need to make a choice to either conform … or not, and if they do choose to conform, they they would experience the truth that sets them free. Another way to put it might be the way theologian John Wycliffe did, in the 1300’s, when he said, “I believe that in the end the truth will conquer.”

Conforming is not an easy thing, because it means abdicating our will, and lets face it, we like to be in control of our will (and almost everything else). But, to conform to truth … and yes, I am talking absolute truth, that is not conforming, that is having a gold paper wrapped gift, with a beautiful silver bow on top, handed to you by one who only ever wants the best for you.

And the best, is truth.

Can you handle the truth?

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Embarrassed to be a Christian

Posted in GOD, WONDER, tagged ashamed, Christ, Christian, christianity, embarrassed, GOD, Jesus, John 4, known, Love, Samaritan woman, spoken word, woman at the well on September 17, 2012| 7 Comments »

I was saddened the other day to read the post of a fellow blogger, of her exposure to a Christian gentleman (I use the word gentleman VERY loosely).

This man, a customer at a restaurant, pleaded for ‘deals’ on numerous menu items. Then proceeded to ‘preach’ whenever he could get any of the restaurant employees attention. He he condemned many people groups for their beliefs and lifestyles. Then his daughter paid the bill (no mention of a tip either).

I was boiling! He makes me embarrassed to be called a Christian. To me, he defames the name of Christ!

This man lives in a bubble without the understanding that but by the grace of God … Instead, he lives in belief that he is where he is because of his ‘right’ behaviors. In his eagerness to tell others how not to live, he is forgetting that choosing the path of Christ is full of far more affirmations than denials.

This man makes representing my Savior to others so difficult, because he undermines my main hope-filled desire; that it is in following in the Creator-ordained steps of my Savior, people would see less of me and more of Him.

The Jesus I worship does not condemn the non-believer of anything except for unbelief.

This makes me think of the story from John (chapter 4), known as the woman at the well. Jesus comes to the well, and asks for a drink of water from not just a woman, but a Samaritan woman (a social faux pas, as he was a Jew), and not just a Samaritan woman but a woman who has had five husbands, and many more men in her life (enough said). Jesus does not condemn her bloodline nor her lifestyle, He simply offers her a quenching for her thirst that simple water could never do.

“This is way too much for just me
there are others,
brother, sister, lovers, haters,
the good and the bad
sinners and saints
who should hear what you told me
who should see what you showed me
who should taste what you gave me
who should feel how you forgave me
for to be known is to be loved
and to be loved is to be known
and they all need this too
we all do
need it for our own”

Because of the way Jesus loved her, she accepted the living water that He offered, and it is said that “many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony” (John 4:39). And who would not come to believe if they first were loved as Jesus loves? And it is He, the Christ, who makes me unashamed to be called Christian.

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Rich Man Poor Man

Posted in GOD, life, WONDER, tagged disdain, extravagance, global rich calculator, Jesus, Mark 10, poor, poor man, rich, rich man, Simon Cowell, Story of the wealthy ruler, wealthy on July 3, 2012| Leave a Comment »

I have seen and heard it happen a million times.

A group of church-ie people will be talking together, and someone will enter the room, or a name of someone will come up. The ‘someone’ would be a person of means, a person who is well-to-do, a person of wealth. And the disdainful facial expression of Simon Cowell about to tell a performer his opinion of their lack of talent will get them nowhere in this life, creeps upon someones face.

Now, it is not often that the disdain is specifically pointed towards that person who, unassumingly, walked in the room, but to their wealth.

There will be comments about the person’s new car, or new house, and how very extravagant they are. There will be talk of the vacations they have been on, of the flashy clothes they wear or the ‘toys’ that their children have. And the entire conversation will be laced with disdain.

Just because a person has ‘wealth’ does not mean that they are holding tightly to their wealth, any more than every ‘poor’ Christian gives all that they posses, down to their last ~~mite~~ penny (but not in Canada, as we are doing away with the penny … does that mean we are cent-less?).

I think we have often focused on the story of Jesus and the rich ruler, but we have failed to read it beyond the self-gratifying surface.

In Mark 10:17-27, the story enfolds …

“As he (that would be Jesus) went out into the street, a man came running up, greeted him with great reverence, and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to get eternal life?”

(note: the man came to Jesus, showing him “reverence” and respect … “good teacher”)

“Jesus said, “Why are you calling me good? No one is good, only God. You know the commandments: Don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t lie, don’t cheat, honor your father and mother.””

(note: Jesus is reminding the man of what every Jewish person would have known at that time)

“He said, “Teacher, I have—from my youth—kept them all!”

(note: how often have we all thought that we were ‘keeping them all?”)

“Jesus looked him hard in the eye—and loved him!”

(note: Jesus LOVED him … like He loves us all)

“He said, “There’s one thing left: Go sell whatever you own and give it to the poor. All your wealth will then be heavenly wealth. And come follow me.”

(note: Jesus asks for the willingness to do this of all who claim the name of Jesus, and not just the visibly or obviously rich, as later Jesus tells the disciples that this will be asked of all who wish to enter God’s kingdom)

“The man’s face clouded over. This was the last thing he expected to hear, and he walked off with a heavy heart. He was holding on tight to a lot of things, and not about to let go.”

(note: there is alot to unpack here! The man did not expect to hear what Jesus said, because, until Jesus came, keeping not just the top ten, but the six hundred and thirteen rules of life and living for a good Jew, was what was expectied. He was holding tightly to a lot of things … sort of like us, rich or poor, with our homes, our vehicles, our grandmother’s ring, our photo albums, our video games, etc. Are we willing to “let go” … of everything?)

“Looking at his disciples, Jesus said, “Do you have any idea how difficult it is for people who ‘have it all’ to enter God’s kingdom?” The disciples couldn’t believe what they were hearing, but Jesus kept on: “You can’t imagine how difficult. I’d say it’s easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye than for the rich to get into God’s kingdom.”

(note: we, in North America, have it ALL! Check out this Global Rich Calculator … I am sure that, like myself, you are in the top 1% of the world’s wealthiest people. Maybe, having it all means that we would have a more difficult time letting go of what we hold tightly?)

“That set the disciples back on their heels. “Then who has any chance at all?” they asked. Jesus was blunt: “No chance at all if you think you can pull it off by yourself. Every chance in the world if you let God do it.””

Note: Anyone who is reading this blog post is wealthy … the only chance that any of us has to enter God’s kingdom, is to let God do the work of changing our lives. We just need to be willing to hold what we have loosely in our hands.

And, get rid of that Simon Cowell look of disdain!

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A Second Kingdom Story

Posted in GOD, life, WONDER, tagged Children, Innocent, Jesus, kingdom, Matthew 18, Matthew 19, Matthew 25:34, sermon on the mount, sheep, shepherd on June 11, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Back to once upon a time land, and castles, and roads paved with gold, and pearly gates, and a king who rules justly and loves mercy. Ah …. I almost can dream myself right into the middle of it all!

Throughout the ‘kingdom’ verses in Matthew, Jesus uses children over and over again in his description of the kingdom of heaven. As with every teaching of Jesus, he did not use children as illustration by chance, but because of what they are, and because of what they are not.

Children are innocent, pure, powerless, uneducated. They are the least of society, because they contribute so little to society, from the perspective of power. In their state of powerlessness, they exemplify that the best (heaven) was created and intended for those who are the least deserving, the least powerful the least able to give anything back.

Last week I wrote about the kingdom when Jesus was asked who would be the greatest in the kingdom. Jesus replied that “whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me” (Matthew 18:4-5).

But Jesus child talk didn’t end there.

In the next verse (v. 6) he says, of children, “if anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.” Wow! I think he meant business. His statement strongly says that he is serious about the value of children.

Jesus then goes on (v. 10-14) to compare a wandering sheep to “one of these little ones.” He compares God to a shepherd who, if one sheep was lost, would leave the others to go in search for the lost one. This would have been unbelievable to the people listening, because a sheep was valuable to a shepherd’s livelihood, a child was … just a child.

With all of this kid talk, people started to bring their children to Jesus, so that he could place his hands on their head, to pray for and bless them (Matthew 19:13-15). This was really getting on the nerves of the disciples, who wanted the kids to head to the nursery so that the important people … like them, could be close to, and hear Jesus as he taught. But Jesus was quick and decisive in his response, “let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

There it was. Jesus wanted so badly for them, and for us, to understand, that power in the kingdom of heaven came from a different source than it did/does on Earth. In the kingdom of heaven, the Father provides membership to those who, like children, have no knowledge of, and no desire to seek power.

Later on in Matthew 25:34, Jesus speaks of the King, “come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.” Those who he is speaking to are those who, like children, the kingdom of heaven was created for. That is my kind of kingdom!

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