Yon Kippur

Tomorrow is the Day of Atonement for our Jewish brothers and sisters. It actually starts today at sundown. I pray that the people of Israel have a peaceful time of celebration. This is the holiest time of year for them. It is a day that a special offering is made to make atonement for the sins of the past. They believe that this is the time when God is planning the events that will take place in the coming year. It’s a time of reflection and changing oneself to become a better person. They fast for about 25 hours and refrain from enjoyable activities to spend concentrated periods with family, friends and others in the Jewish community. It’s a time to cleanse of old grievances and gripes. To let go of the past sins and transgressions and move on into the new year with a new attitude and a new self.

I think whether we are Jewish or not this is a good thing to do for ourselves. We are all so busy in our lives sometimes we forget to forgive others and ourselves. We all need a time to let go of things, cleanse our hearts and souls of the darkness that has accumulated over the past year and start the year fresh and alive, open to the light of the gospel and with renewed hope and goals.

My fear for the Jewish state of Israel is that Iran and the Palestinians will take advantage of this holy time to disrupt their life and worship. I believe in putting myself in their shoes and I would be upset and angry if they try to use this special holy event to attack them trying to catch them unaware. It seems the radical Islamic sect have no compassion and are driven out of madness rather than any kind of kindness or love for others. As a Christian I cannot understand this kind of reaction or belief. Christ is all about understanding, offering love and compassion not violence.

I have rarely seen violence accomplish much except more violence and resentment while Christianity extends the hand of love, compassion and help for people who need assistance, offering the gospel message through our actions of love not violence. I can't help but think they would get a better conversion rate if they tried something other than killing people who did not agree with their message. It seems downright counterproductive to me. What do they hope to gain by killing anyone who refuses to believe as they do?

When I see what goes on over there in Iran, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt, I feel lucky to still have the ability to believe in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Though of late, I have felt that right slipping away from us here in the United States of America. We must stand as Christians and retain our freedom of religion because it is our most fundamental right and the one that guarantees all the others we have come to know and live by. You can see what taking our religious freedom away will do by looking across the sea at those countries that terrorize their own people.

Our country has gone overboard on trying to keep the peace here in this country. We have successfully lived side by side with Jewish, Protestants, Catholics, Baptists, Evangelicals, and numerous other religions without offending anyone. Why is it that the Atheists cannot realize they are not the only one who has an opinion? Can we not just agree to disagree and allow the other party to continue as they always have? It seems the minorities in this country are trying to overshadow the wants of many for the wants of a few.

The demise of a democracy is when the majority are no longer represented. We are witnessing that phenomenon today. If we don’t clean the House and Senate of all these special interest agenda’s they will destroy this country. It’s time to go green and recycle, limit their terms so that they are less likely to be subsidized by these big corporations and special interest groups thereby representing the people who actually elected them instead.

The World's Opinion

“You can please some of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time.” That is what we all have to face as bloggers, writers, or just people in general. I have become quite used to this phenomenon and have been dealing with it most of my life. Being a believer in Christ Jesus and taking the Bible as the literal directive for my life here on earth, seems to makes some people a bit disgruntle and uncomfortable. However, it is hardly unusual to have someone who hates, misjudges, or condemns us for our perspective and interpretation of the word of God. It really does not matter who you are someone will find fault with something you say or do. So what do you do?

You ask yourself a couple of simple questions. Whose opinion of you really matters to you? Do you really care what other people think more than you care about how God sees you? Are you relaying the truth, as you know it? Do you feel lead by the Holy Spirit or is it only your opinion as a human being directed by your own mind and worldly influences?

The answers are easy. First, the only opinion that I should be concerned about is God’s. Second, he holds the scale of justice and mercy in his hands and I had better give you an honest measure, it matters to him, he expects it from all of us. Third, I am relaying the truth in God’s own words and simply explaining it as the Holy Spirit explained it to me. He directs me in all things and expects me to be honest and true whether it pleases someone or not the truth is the truth. Forth, I am very well aware that a man’s own mind can lead him astray, so it is imperative that we pray and ask for guidance before relaying our message to the world to assure ourselves it is right and truth.

That is what the book of Job really relates to us. Job’s friends thought they knew what was going on and were advising Job about what he had to have done to deserve the judgments of the Lord. Nevertheless, in reality God was testing Job, not punishing him for any misdeeds. He had to dig down deep inside and rely on his faith in the Lord. Even though he did not understand the reasons, he did know and trust the Lord with all of his being. He held on to that belief until the end of his suffering and his faithfulness was eventually rewarded.

If you set your heart aright and stretch out your hands toward him, if you remove all iniquity from your conduct, and let not injustice dwell in your tent, surely then you may lift up your face in innocence; you may stand firm and unafraid. For then you shall forget your misery, or recall it like waters that have ebbed away. Then your life shall be brighter than the noonday; its gloom shall become as the morning, and you shall be secure, because there is hope; you shall look round you and lie down in safety, and you shall take your rest with none to disturb. –Job 11:13-19

I stand firm in my beliefs in my Lord and Savior and his written word. I take comfort in the knowledge that I am following what he has called me to do. I try to encourage others to be strong in the secular world we live in; we are in the world but not of this world. It is little wonder we do not feel like we belong here for we do not. I look forward to the coming of the Lord and the homecoming we will receive as we meet our father in heaven. When I go before the Lord, I will do it with the confidence that he will look at me and say, “Well done my good and faithful servant.” That my friends is what matters, so hold on to the truth and profess it with all your heart for you are not alone.

Consequences of Sin

If our sins are forgiven, doesn't that mean all is well? Everything is back in balance and we are good to go, just as if nothing ever happened? The answer may surprise you; the answer: Not really.

When we commit sin God does forgive us our transgressions but the consequences of the sin we committed are still going to be felt by us. We do not have to go any further than 2 Samuel 11:2-27. It tells the story of David and his adultery with Bathsheba, it ends with the murder of Bathsheba's husband Uriah the Hittite.  God forgives David of his sins of adultery and murder but there are still consequences that he experiences because of the sins he committed.

David and Bathsheba's newborn baby dies because the Lord stuck the child with an illness that took his life on the seventh day. So even though the Lord forgave them both the sin cost them both the life of their son. Perhaps that is why it is said the children suffer the sins of their fathers. I do not really know for sure but it was definitely the case in this situation.

All of that said so that everyone might keep in mind, before we commit a sin, that there would be consequences even though we might not see them happen immediately afterward. I know people who sin without remorse because they know God will forgive them. It has become nearly ineffectual in its nature. I have to wonder if they are truly forgiven just because they ask.

I think sin is only forgiven if you are truly sorry you committed said sin and you are genuine in your remorse and resolve to not commit the sin again. What do you think? I have heard different opinions in reference to sin and forgiveness mostly based on the different religious views. It seems so open ended out there anymore. There does not seem to be any definite black and white, right or wrong, everything seems permissible, nothing but muted shades of gray. Churches feel they should not condemn anyone, or call them out if their behavior is non-biblical. They say it is all about Love, not judgment.

My personal position is not a politically correct one. It is a Biblical one. The sin of yesterday, the sins of the Bible, are still sins today. That may not be a popular opinion and it was not in Jesus's day either but it is the fact of the matter. That is my belief. A church who instructs otherwise is teaching falsely. Where do you stand, with God or with Man?

A Daily Prayer Journal

As the day began today, I paused for thought and prayer. The quiet surrounded me until a rooster broke the silence crowing and the sun allowed its light to peak from the horizon. As it began to rise, it illuminated  the sky with hues that warmed the clouds. The world was about to awaken and the quiet would dissolve into the hustle and bustle of everyday life. 

I can truly understand why Jesus arose early to pray to his father. The Bible states that Jesus often separated himself from the crowds that followed him to retreat into seclusion to pray. He often went into the wilderness or out in the lake with the apostles. If he needed to take time out away from others and the distractions he faced in the world he lived in then, how much more do we need to do the same today? 

Jesus did not have children tugging on his shirttails trying to get his attention, television always on in the background, cell phones ringing or making a tone or song to distract us, airplanes zooming overhead or cars thundering past him as he walked. He did not have bosses giving him deadlines or have any traffic jams to deal with. He lived in a simpler time and place than we do today, yet he still needed time alone to pray.

I encourage you to make time in your busy schedule to take a time out. Provide seclusion for yourself, if only for 15-20 minutes a day, a prayer time in a quiet place. Take time to read God’s written word and have the uninterrupted time to contemplate the scripture, what it means and how it correlates with your life in today’s world. Jesus tells us to meditate on the scriptures that we may gain wisdom. To do that, we need do disperse distraction and allow ourselves the time to meditate. 

Another habit I encourage is the art of keeping a journal. For me it started as a way of dispelling the regret and hurt I was dealing with going through a rather rough trial in my life. What I discovered was that I could write away my pain and feelings that I could not express to another human being. It was feelings I had to work through and deal with, then later, it allowed me to forgive myself as well as the other person involved.

The journal became a lifeline to Christ as it evolved into a prayer journal. To my amazement, I realized that by writing a journal of my prayers, looking back through them periodically, I discovered how many of them were actually answered, even ones I had long forgotten about. Keeping a prayer journal is a faith builder. If ever you have doubt Christ hears your prayers or answers them, this will help you. It builds your faith by showing you how incredibly often he not only answers your prayers but the small miracles he has brought about in your life you may not have even noticed.

Keeping a prayer journal is truly life changing. Do not take my word for it, try it and see for yourselves. It will provide testimonies that you can share with others and greater opportunities to glorify God. Isn’t that why we are here anyway, to Glorify God in all we do?

Start your prayer journal today! Share with us the testimonies you discover by keeping a journal of your prayers, encourage others, build your faith and glorify God! 

I would love to hear from others who journal their prayers and the experiences they have had doing it. Did it help to build your faith? Did it provide more testimonies to share with others to glorify God? If it helped you please share your testimony here.

Christians of the World Are Watching

We whom live in the United States don’t think about it much because we live here I guess, but as I was zipping around the internet yesterday I came across and article written by an author in the UK. It was a stunning assessment of the evils committed by the nation of the United States. I was ashamed to admit after reading the article that it was true. Sometimes we as Christians do not see any further than our own neighborhoods, if that far. We get busy, caught up in the operations of business, school and our family’s everyday requirements never considering that other people are watching us or that we are indeed an example to others.

Christians around the world are watching to see if God punishes us for our evil deeds. They understand perhaps more than ourselves that we are clearly and blatantly thumbing our noses at the Lord’s covenants. In the article they in fact, pointed out that, some of the things we allow are illegal in other countries because they are immoral. If the whole world can see these things, why can we not see these things? Are we so blinded by the flesh that we can no longer see what we are really doing?

People in other nations see the United States as a God favored nation. I would have to agree with that assumption. I believe we as a Christian nation, founded on God’s own principles are favored by God’s grace and he has rewarded us with prosperity that few countries outside of Israel have ever seen. That is why the Christians in the world are watching so closely. Because they know, from examples given in the Bible that God will eventually tire of our insolence and rebellion. They are waiting to see what he does to balance the injustice if God is indeed just.

Our country has separated itself from God. We as a people of the United States, even people who claim to be Christians think that abortion is acceptable, a right they obtained for themselves. The country has embraced the secular lies that sex with anyone at any time is acceptable outside of marriage. The western women have emasculated the men. We are still fighting to keep the sanctity of marriage between one man and one woman while homosexuality parades around with pride. Sometimes it feels like a losing battle, as we decline into the pit of deprivation. Our families are in crisis, about 50% of children live in single parent homes, divorce rates climb. Poverty rates climb with them. Are we losing God’s blessings? I would have to say if we continue committing these abominations we most certainly will. 

This November the 2012 election is the most pivotal election in our Christian history. The courses charted by the outcome of this election are simply whether we keep Christian values and morals or toss them to the wind. I implore you to give this election a great deal of thought. It is not only a president we are deciding on but also a way of life and the future blessings of our country are at stake. God blesses obedience to his word; he brings judgments to those who do not honor his commandments. That is a fact; one only has to look in the Bible to see this example played out repeatedly in biblical history. 

The fact is President Obama represents disobedience to God as the Democratic Party takes God out of everything, encourages reliance on the government, which makes taxes soar and believes in destroying the sanctity of marriage. He believes in redistributing the wealth of the working person into the hands of those who refuse to work and paying for their healthcare, keeping him, congressional representatives and senators exempt. There is no justice with his plans, the rich are exempt, and the middle class returns to poverty by way of oppressive tax burdens.

Mitt Romney represents the Christian ethics and morals this country was founded upon, he promises to strike down abortion, maintain the sanctity of marriage God’s way and relieve the tax burden that is crushing this county’s economic growth. He will bring healing, restoring God’s grace and blessing back to this country, only if he keeps those promises. If we hold him to this task, it will bring back the prosperity this country once enjoyed. 

Our problems are not merely economic, they are spiritual caused by our iniquity and blatant disregard for life and God’s commands. God has been sending us warnings with earthquakes, drought, tornados and economic plagues as signs of his coming judgments. It is time we paid attention, repented and prayed for the forgiveness we do not deserve.

Clearly, President Obama has done nothing to build this country up even though he threw billions of dollars in bailouts to solve the problem driving us deeper in debt; job creation incentives have done nothing to increase jobs but barely replaced the jobs lost during his administration. He talks about not being finished, no he is not finished and will not be until he brings the country to its knees, it is his father’s dream he wishes to fulfill not the American dream. 

Christian brothers and sisters it is time to stand up and vote for God. Stop and think before making that ballot selection this November, do you represent God and the Christian you claim to be? Do your actions reflect the values you proclaim to possess? Are you voting for blessings or judgments? I do not want to be like Lot’s family as they ran from Sodom and Gomorrah. The Christian world is watching everything we do and God is waiting for our answer.

Faith Based Blogging

I have read some incredible blogs this week and have been touched by all of them to some degree. However, what I have noticed is there are wonderful blogs out there from young people; lots of them. My heart is elated to see them reaching out with their message to spread the word of God to everyone they can.

Here are links to two of them:

My Journal: The Notebook 2 Remember -   http://concilia-cici.weebly.com/     

The World of Mismatched Socks -   http://www.theworldofmismatchedsocks.blogspot.com/

Faithful Bloggers is a Community for Christian bloggers. They help you to build your blog to glorify the Lord. -  http://faithfulbloggers.com.  If you would like to read other blogs and enjoy talking with other bloggers this would be a great site to visit. You may decide to join them as well. All of us could use a little encouragement to keep our blogs going faithfully every week. If you have someone to help unblock your writers block, it is easier to continue to keep producing that great content and encourage others in their walk with God.

I encourage all of you to continue in your efforts for they do make a difference in other people’s lives. The stories you tell and the situations you have been through all touch someone's heart who is experiencing the very same things you have and need to know they are not alone.

When in a disturbing situation or dealing with a tragedy, we all need a comforting scripture to hold close to our hearts. It helps to know what helped someone else deal with the pain and agony of life’s trials and tribulations. It is all too often we feel alone and without hope. Overwhelmed by the difficult problem we all faced at one time or another.

My heart is moved by a noble theme as I recite my verses to the king; my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer. Psalm 45:1

Let your tongue be your keyboard, in these modern times in which we live. Express your noble themes about our king and Lord Jesus Christ. We have much work to do if we are to spread the gospel throughout the world. Let us use the tools we have that can accelerate the process so that our savior, Jesus, can return very soon. Hurry, for we do not have much time, the season is here, for we can see the signs foretold the birth pains have started.

Forgiveness an Essential Tool in the Christian's Life

Anger is like a snake's poisonous bite at first it is just a sharp jab of pain or hurt as the offending person delivers their remark or offensive action. Then, as we have time to think about it or others see what transpired, the venom of hurt spreads slowly throughout the rest of our body. Showing up in our demeanor, our smile fades, we might look down, or just leave the scene of the injury. As we retreat to a safe place, it takes hold of our heart and there it will stay until we do something to change it. As I read the passage, I am reminded how true this statement is; Wrath and anger are hateful things, yet the sinner hugs them tight. Sirach 27:30.

We have but two choices, we can expel the venom of hurt, humiliation, and pain by giving the gift of forgiveness or we can let it infect our minds and poison us against the other person. If we choose to forgive, we may reclaim the friendship with that person or we can simply move on without remorse.

However, if we choose to let the offense stand then the infection quickly spreads and resentment sets in, making forgiveness all the harder. If the wound continues unaddressed for any length of time, bitterness and hate can take root making forgiveness not only impossible but thoughts of retaliation likely and the situation can escalate from there and get very ugly indeed.

I have experienced all of these feelings though out the years and some of them were justified. However, I soon realized that the poison was making me sick inside, and that the hate that festered there was only hurting me, not the other person. In fact, they seemed quite satisfied that I harbored those feelings and showed no intention of dispelling them for me. That is the moment I realized I could not change the other person. Nevertheless, I could change how I felt about the experience and stop letting it define my life.

I took action; although it took a lot of courage, I spoke to the offending party. I forgave them for the incident and I flushed all that anger and resentment out of my body forever. I cannot describe the relief I felt afterwards except to say the joy that flooded my heart with forgiveness was blissful.

Forgiveness is a Christian’s finest asset; it makes for a pleasant life with love and fellowship with others. The Lord Jesus many times throughout the Bible displayed it. He left it as a commandment second only to loving God with all our hearts and minds are we to love each other. Part of loving each other is forgiving each other, for none of us is perfect.

In Matthew 18:21 the parable of the unforgiving servant, Peter asks Jesus about forgiveness. It states; Then Peter approaching him asked, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him?” “As many as seven times?” Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.”

Young children are quick to forgive. The parents stay angry with other parents longer than a child will stay mad at his friend. They can be a wonderful example to all of us but we should be the ones teaching this lesson to them instead of learning it from them. Jesus also told us that God would forgive our sins as we forgive others that sin against us. It would do us well to remember this in our dealings with others.

Forgiving others can save our own lives, as well as, allowing us to live in peace while we are here on earth. Can your forgiveness skills be improved? I think perhaps we can all work on this skill, if you have any ideas or stories of forgiveness you would like to share please comment below. We can all learn from each other.