Fritz von Uhde– Museum der Bildenden Kuenste, Germany

I wasn’t always a Super Christian. I’m not now. But briefly I tried my hand at it. When writing The House on Tenafly Road I threw some Bible quotes in to be period correct and this piqued my curiosity so I read the book through, became a missionary and one of those people who has Bible studies in their dining room (the first one began with my dog peeing under the table),

Once when I first started blogging an atheist wanted to debate who was more delusional an atheist or a Christian and I bailed. I have no need to convince people of anything. Even as a missionary the impulse was to share the really cool idea that the God I had always thought a trickster and fraud and pretty mean to sacrifice his son for murderers actually wasn’t half bad. The cliff notes and sayings painted and framed at Grandma’s never captured the majesty of the Bible’s story. John Weldon loses faith. Katherine has only the slightest hint of it and the biggest “sinner” of the book probably has the most. I hadn’t intended for God to be anywhere near my writing, but alas He keeps popping up. There’s a conversion and a dismissal of God and there are people trying to figure it all out and that’s to be expected since I’ve still got a lot of issues with God, but when I see a picture like this with a hip and kind looking Jesus and remember that God didn’t really sacrifice his son, but WAS his son and let himself be killed for us–I’m like WTF?! If it’s all a fairytale then it’s a pretty bizarre one.

This one is from Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Click on the link.

Related articles

• Why Did God Allow The Oklahoma City Tornado? (thetwilightyears.wordpress.com)
• Al Mohler, ‘Natural Evil’ and the Oklahoma Tornado (5ptsalt.com)

Psalm 34:

“The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry; the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth……Evil will slay the Wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned.” 

Who is pointing out “J.K. Rowling” as the Culprit of Boston Bombing Below? Who sent these words, pictures to me? J.K. Rowling Herself? Pointing the finger point to J.K. Rowling is just the beginning of In-House Fight!

From Now On, Who are Going to Finger Point Whom in In-House?

May 13, 2013 Leave a comment (Edit)

Croaky, Who do you think wrote all these linking You and Boston Bombing?

Some months ago, I recommended him to flee this country and start over.

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

Once a woman came to Gautama Buddha, she was in tears. She told the Buddha that her only son had died, and she asked for help from Buddha. Buddha told her: – I’ll help you, but for this you must bring me a handful of rice, which you will take in the house where no one has died.

The woman immediately ran to their neighbors, but from every house she left empty-handed. Then she began to go into houses of people unfamiliar to her, but the result was the same. In the evening, she came to Buddha and told him that she understood his idea and thanked him …

In comparison:

11 After this, Jesus went into a city called Nain, and many of his disciples and a great multitude went with Him.

12 And when he came to the gate of the city, then dead man was carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people went with her out of town.

13 When He saw her, the Lord had compassion on her and said to her: “do not weep”.

14 And He came and touched the bier, people stopped, and He said, young man! I say unto thee, Arise!

15 And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and He gave him to his mother.

- In fact, these differences are in the nature of the two religions. Christ told His disciples:  ”I have overcome death.” This statement is completely contrary to the point of view of Buddha.

- In general, if you are satisfied with the opportunity to put up with death – you have to follow Buddha, and if you want to go the way of victory over death – you need to follow Christ.

It is actually an enemy if you have projects and deadlines to complete.

Rule Number 1 of Youth Entrepreneurship: Do not sleep in past 6 a.m.

Some people may wake up earlier, however, I am setting this as my standard at the moment.

The truth: I woke up at 5:30 a.m., didn’t realize that I turned off the alarm to go back to sleep. Then, I had someone wake up me up at 6:15 a.m. and I woke up….then I found myself dozing off (honestly, by mistake) and eventually I woke up at 7:30 a.m. – This is not acceptable.

Why is it important to wake up early in the morning?

1. God has so much to say in the morning; God’s word tells us that He speaks early. By a certain time of the day, we become busy, distracted and  overwhelmed with the day, we sometimes push God off.
2. Entrepreneurship requires a different mindset. Sleeping in is a laziness mentality. I do believe in rest, that’s why it’s important to have a Sabbath.
3. Why wait ’til later to do something when you can do it done early?

Why I tell you, reader, that this is a progressive mindset shift – I don’t say it lightly.

With this journey, I realized I not only have to change my sleeping schedule, but I have to take care of my health – so this will definitely be a journey for you to follow.

Youth Entrepreneurship Tip (Y.E.T) – Don’t sleep on the journey. Seek God’s voice first, then start your day, immediately. 

By Ian Punnett, Special to CNN
Follow @deaconpunnett

(CNN) “God never gives us more than we can handle.”

God, have I learned to hate that cliche.

As a clergy person, as a hospital chaplain intern and as a father, I have come to believe that, at best, that platitude is a classic example of meaningless bumper-sticker theology. It’s easily said and only makes sense when it goes by you so fast you don’t have time to think about it.

At worst, however, claiming that God scales a tragedy up or down depending on our ability to handle loss is as heartless as it is thoughtless.

In the deadly aftermath of the tornado that destroyed so much of Moore, Oklahoma, pain is only compounded by the implication that somehow the survivors are complicit in the death of a loved one because of their strength as a person. In this view, if God is only giving me what I can handle, then it would seem my boys would be a lot safer if I were weak.

Follow the CNN Belief Blog on Twitter

Anybody who has stood in the reception line at a child’s funeral likely has suffered through the repetition of this dubious claim and its equally insidious cousin, “God must have needed a new quarterback (or ballerina) up in heaven,” another expression that has hurt more people than it has healed.

Instead of simply saying, “I am so sorry this has happened” or “I am heartsick over what you are going through” or “This is just so wrong,” some mourners attempt to explain the unexplainable by forcing the world into the “Everything happens for a reason” paradigm. Bumper-sticker theology of this type reorders the universe less for the benefit of the grief-stricken and more for the benefit of the person offering it.

Because what could be reasonable about the death of a child? Deadly tornadoes can be understood scientifically, to be sure, but there is nothing reasonable about a tornado wiping out a school full of frightened children.

CNN Belief: Who hears #PrayersForOklahoma?

A tornado is not the finger of God squashing us like bugs on a sidewalk. If weather were God’s instrument of justice and  tornado victims were singled out to reward the good or punish the bad, then meteorologists would be theologians.

In researching  my book “How to Pray When You’re Pissed at God (Or Anyone Else For That Matter),” I spoke with dozens of people who told me that they lost their ability to pray — at a time when they needed it most — when family and friends pressured them into believing that God took their loved one on purpose, and that they were supposed to feel good about it.

In Oklahoma the death toll is 24, and it’s expected to rise. I believe that God stands innocently with all the victims. The difference between those who lived and those who died is not the difference between those who had more or less faith, but the random difference between those who turned left and those who turned right.

In our hearts, we might crave the order of a world where God never gives us more than we can handle, but ultimately platitudes are placebos. They only work some of the time and their effectiveness requires the buy-in of the recipient.

CNN’s Belief Blog: The faith angles behind the biggest stories

If a bereaved parent finds peace in believing that God needed a little quarterback in heaven, far be it from me to challenge that perspective.

That said, in the face of tragedy, I believe that the faithful can best serve victims with sympathetic ears and warm hugs in what is called “a ministry of presence.” If they want to cry, cry with them. If they want to laugh and tell stories, smile through the pain, and if they want to yell “Why, God, why?” at heaven, then shake your fist too and leave the question unanswered for now.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Ian Punnett.

Father, I do not like this chapter—this story makes me sick!  It is difficult even to imagine these types of things happening nowadays, in our “enlightened”, modern society.  Remind me Lord, that wherever the King does not reign, the enemy’s influence and human depravity abound!

Pour out your Spirit into my life and the lives of my children and their families; give all of your people discernment to recognize every demonic spirit of antichrist, of lawlessness, and of depravity at work in the world these days.  Separate, in our hearts and our understanding, the light from the darkness.  Give us wisdom to recognize truth, and courage to stand up against every lie of the enemy.

Keep me from the distractions and diversions the enemy throws my way, the things which keep me from accomplishing your purposes for my life.  I do not want to be delayed!—rather, I choose to listen to you and be led by your Holy Spirit.  Lord, I do not want the cares of this world—what I eat, what I drink, where I live, and the clothes I wear—to so consume my focus that I do not hear you or see the bigger things you have for me.  Awaken me always to seek you early and strengthen my heart in you—for it is faith that overcomes the world, and faith comes through hearing your Word.

Teach me your ways; give me your wisdom.  Train my ears to listen and my heart to discern wise counsel.  Give me an abundance of grace to resist leaning on my own understanding; instead, teach me to wait on you and recognize your voice.

Father, I am incredibly appalled that the men in this story could treat these two young women so cruelly, and with no regard for their lives.  It is so easy to assign those depths of degradation to the paganism and corruption existing in a much earlier time of human history and overlook the same disregard for life, the human trafficking, and demonic activities at work in the world today.  The enemy has not changed, unless it is to become more diverse in his perversions and subtle in his deceptions.  Expose his works of darkness, O God!

Forgive me; forgive your people for indifference and passivity.  Create passion in our hearts for our King and His Kingdom—let our prayer always be, “thy kingdom come, they will be done one earth as it is in heaven.”  Train us always to live in the righteousness, peace, and joy of your Holy Spirit.  Give us courageous hearts to champion righteousness and justice for the broken, disregarded, and rejected people of this world.  Immerse our lives in your grace so that we can extend it to everyone we encounter on our journeys through this life.

I pray these things in the powerful name of Jesus, amen.

Based largely on the work of John MacArthur.

NASB:
7. Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him, so it is to be. Amen
8. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

In our introduction we saw that this book reveals or unveils Jesus Christ to us, not His hiding, but His uncovering in full glory about to receive His reward from God the Father. It is God the Father’s intention to reward His Son for what He did at His first coming at the cross in humiliation, suffering and death.

We also saw, that this book is meant to be read by Christians, we are to know and understand the bigger picture of how it all ends. Rev 22:10 says seal not the prophecy of this book. Seal it not! It is the only book which comes with a specific blessing to the one who reads, hears and heeds the words written within it, because the time is near or at hand meaning that this is God’s next set of events to happen, which are coming soon, they are imminent and that we should live in the expectancy that it could happen now, today, tonight. This should affect what we see as being priorities in the way we live, are we being a witness in our world? Do we seek opportunities to preach biblical truth in to the lives of those we meet? Have we prepared ourselves for this day of the Lord and are we ready for it?

We can also note: that up till now it is largely an unfinished history awaiting to fulfilled. There are things which are still out of place:
• The church should be the bride with its Lord and saviour.
• The Lord Jesus should be king of a physical kingdom.
• Israel is awaiting its unveiling and restoration.
• Satan the usurper is still yet to be dethroned and thrown into the lake of fire along with all the unregenerate and ungodly.

If this, is the finished account, in the fact that Christ Jesus died and ascended, then the victory is not a full victory until these things have taken place. No! Christ Jesus is still yet to be fully glorified and reigning in the physical realms as well as in the individual hearts of believers. Also there would be no hope for the redeemed until these things come to pass, but here, in this book is a glimpse into our redeemed future in eternal glory and everything that is out of place now will then be righted:
• Satan and the ungodly will be dealt with.
• The king of glory will have a physical kingdom.
• The church will be with its Lord and saviour.
• All Israel will be restored.

In our book, the usurper is about to be dethroned by the victor, the unregenerate will be condemned to eternal fate for their rejection of God and His chosen messiah and the order is about to be restored and all in the world will be judged. Those who did not reject God’s Son and held fast His testimony before mankind will receive their glorification and be with their king forever in a newly created order.

This account, is quite literally how the whole story ends. If you love action books then this book is better than any paperback that you have ever read, for in this book unfolds a story of great drama and suspense, betrayal by an apostate church, mystery, disaster upon disaster, conflict and war, political intrigue and global change, economic downfall, great fear, terror and horrors as judgements are unleashed upon the created universe and mankind.

It is also a book that has great joy and fulfilment and even ends in a happy ending, for those who call on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation.

In verses 7-8, we now come to the major theme or thesis of the book which then takes John the rest of the book to reveal to us how it is all going to pan out.

Verse 7 starts with the great theme announcement ‘Behold, He is coming…’
It is about His Coming!
The One who is being revealed to us is going to come. Jesus Christ is coming! it is certain! It is written in a present tense verb, it means that it has already been set in motion and we should be expectant of His soon return. This is on the theme of Daniel 7:13-14:
“I kept Looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of man was coming, and He came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed.”

The coming One is a messianic title, see Matthew’s account of John the Baptist’s questions about Christ Jesus, whilst John is in prison he asks, are you the One who is coming?
Jesus is The coming One, who is coming again, all history is awaiting this event to fulfil all things and left as it is now it is quite literally unfinished business.

In all Scripture, it is said that about one fifth relates to prophecy, of which one third relates to His second coming. There are about 1500 Old Testament passages that relate directly or indirectly to this second coming.

Today, many deny or see the doctrine of the second coming as non-significant, maybe because the issue is a moral one and they are not ready or prepared to face this ending. Despite what the scoffers say, those that deny His coming, the scriptures say otherwise and God is the one who says what He wants to happen, and it will happen, you can be certain of it because God has said it.

In fact, there are a number of things concerning scripture that demand that He comes again:

1. The Promises of God demands that He comes again
Genesis 49:10 gives us a promise concerning that he must come and relates to His rule.

Psalm 2 gives promises that He will rule when He comes with a rod of iron and as a judge, it is His inheritance to have the nations bow down. Has not happened yet, did not happen at His first coming, must happen at His second coming.

Isaiah gives promises concerning that He will have the government upon His shoulders when He comes and speaks of a glorious kingdom to come. Yet to be fulfilled, meaning that it demands that it happens at His second coming.

Zechariah, promises that the mount of Olives will be split and He will be judge the nations there. Again not happened yet, must happen at His second coming.

2. The words of Jesus Christ Himself demand that He comes again
John 14 Jesus states that He goes to prepare a place for us in His kingdom and return.

Luke 19 Jesus preaches a story showing a truth about a noble leaving for a distant country to receive a kingdom for Himself and then return. Jesus by telling this story is really saying to us I am that king I have gone to heaven to receive a kingdom and I will return and I will judge what you have done.

This story also shows us where our priorities should lie. When we consider that we were chosen and called out from the world (not by anything we have done) we should be able to note that we have been given a greater currency than all the wealth of this passing world, too much to keep to ourselves! It leads us to the question: What have I done with the mina I have been given? If I did not evangelise myself have I invested my resources into the kingdom so that others could go, where I did not or could not? Is that reason genuine?

It also carries a warning that the king will judge if we have acted with our gospel privilege in faith or not. It is a call that this message that we carry is not meant to be kept for ourselves, too important to keep to ourselves, lives are at stake! – we should be shouting out the message from the roof tops!!! Oh church arise and put your armour on! wake up from our sleepy slumber and stand for the gospel truth. How can they hear unless someone is sent out and how can can they respond unless someone goes to preach to them? (Romans)

In this book, the angel sent to John is told by Jesus six times to announce ‘I am coming.’

3. The Guarantee of the Holy Spirit demands that He comes again
John 15:26; 16:13: He will testify about me and disclose to you what is to come. Guide you into truth and inspire the writers to write of His coming, that is the work of the Holy Spirit see John 16:8-11

1 Cor. 1:4-8: You will not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly await the Lord’s Jesus Christ’s revealing at His coming and He will keep you firm to the end so that you will be blameless on the day of the Lord.

Col. 3:4; 1 Pet. 1:13; and Philippians 3:20-21

Finally James 5:8 says that we are to be patient and stand firm, because His coming is near!
In a day that many have surrendered ground on the truth of the gospel to appease the world, it is a big challenge to stand firm, when we may be put in harm’s way for doing so, do you consider this message worth dying for? The early Christians did!

4. The program of the Church demands that He comes again
Acts 15:14-16: What is happening here is the assembly has gathered to hear reports from Paul and Barnabas and they were reporting that Gentiles (non Jewish peoples) were being saved from their sins and some Jewish believers were wanting them to undergo circumcision which is really an outward sign of the old Mosaic covenant and of law following as a means of salvation.

This issue needed to be sorted out so Paul and Barnabas went to Jerusalem to report and let the council decide things concerning non-Jewish believers.

Some who were originally Pharisees were saying they must be circumcised and keep the law of Moses. Paul addresses them and says why do you try to put a yoke on them that even the Jews could not keep? He was realising that we have one who has and died in our place who was without sin – so we are saved by grace through faith in Christ alone and that this is a new and better covenant.

From verse 14 Simon is able to realise that God is doing something new that for a time the Gospel is to go to the Gentiles, but that after this gospel age that the prophecies of particularly referring to Amos 9:11-12 but all of the OT prophets are in agreement that after this age the king would return and rebuild the house of David (Israel) and they would be restored.
We must note that there is a sequence happening: Church, kingdom then return.

In 1 Thessalonians the Church is awaiting His return to meet with the Lord in the air. To go to be with Him.

Psalm 2 again to rule the nations.

Joel 3:12: again awaiting the judge to bring judgement to the nations at the valley of Jehoshaphat.

5. The program for Israel demands His coming
Isaiah 59:20 I am going to come and bring you to an eternal salvation.

In fact, in most of the OT God promises them a kingdom which they are still waiting for.

Look at Jeremiah 23:5-8.

6. The humiliation of Christ Jesus demands His coming
Israel rejected their king and turned their backs on Him, in Matt. 26:63 Jesus stated to them that from now on they will see the Son of man sitting at the right hand of the Father in heaven Him in power and coming on the clouds of heaven.

The last thing that people see is that He was beaten and wounded and crucified and left to die in the Palestinian sun. Mutilated and murdered is not the last thing to happen, His death demands that He did rise, ascend and comes again.

7. The exaltation of Satan demands His coming
Temporary power has been given to the usurper described as the ruler of this age, prince of the air, prince of the world and given the power of death – Jesus at His resurrection ended that power for those whom believed and holds the keys to death and Hades. If things stay as they are Satan still reigns in this world, Jesus must come again to put his reign to an end.

8. The expectation of the saints demand His coming
Our hope does demand it, we know He is coming to put things in their rightful place and restore things so that the struggles brought by the curse of sin are replaced once more with blessing. We are all awaiting our full salvation where sin will be no more in our lives. We are awaiting our glorification, fully sanctified and with our Lord see Titus 2:11-14.

Now we can see that central to the faith of Christianity is the truth of the doctrine of the second coming. We are to believe that He is coming.
We can now look to the 4 major points we need to see from these verses:

1. The Glory of it (verse 7)
‘Coming with clouds’….

This is referring to God’s Shekinah glory often visible as a cloud or indescribable blazing light. It relates to God’s presence.

In Israel’s dessert wanderings they were led by a cloud – cloud by day, fire by night, when the cloud was over the tabernacle they would stay put, when the cloud moved they were to follow. See Exodus 40: The glory of the Lord filled the temple. See also 1 Kings 8:10.

When Jesus ascended into heaven in Acts 1 He was received into heaven with this cloud of glory and there again is the promise that He would return in the same way.

The point is that no man can look upon His glory face to face and live – it is veiled from man because God is holy, man cannot see His glory because of their sin.

2. The scope of it (verse 7)
‘Every eye will see Him’….
Moses had a glimpse of the back of His glory hidden in the cleft of the rock. Jesus at His transfiguration revealed in part His glory to His disciples who were terrified by it. See also, Hebrews 1:3

At His return His glory will be unveiled and will be made visible to all, for all to see. Men will cry out for the rocks to fall on them and hide from Him but none shall be hidden, they will cry out for death and death will flee.

The passage then divides them into two groups:

‘Those who pierced Him’….
Who pierced Him?
This is not relating to the Roman soldiers who carried out the crucifixion of Jesus or their leaders nor is it the sense that all through their human nature are sinners and need a saviour to take their place, but to the ones who brought Him before the Romans to be crucified. The Jews, Israel!

In fact it is a direct ‘kesher’ or link to Zechariah 12 from verse 10 – a prophecy relating to a day when they will see the one whom they crucified and mourn the tears of repentance as never has been seen since the days when king Josiah died see 2 Chronicles 34/35. The cloak from their eyes will be removed.

Now some will already have been saved during the first half of the tribulation known as the 144,000 from the tribes of Israel and many will be saved through this time. Some believe it to be all of Israel, but it all depends on the meaning of ‘ALL Israel’. If you read Romans 9/10/11 I believe that ‘all Israel’ means both Jew and gentile that have called on the Lord to be saved and they make up the term ‘All Israel’ not of natural Israel but I do not know enough on it to be certain one way or another, I certainly do not believe that the church replaces Israel but that certain things will happen to natural Israel during this time which would provoke many of them unto jealousy, repentance and faith in our Lord – see the story of the prodigal son, what happened to the older brother in the field, whilst the younger brother was at the party?

I certainly believe that the best and most safest view is the one in the middle that those who call upon the name of the Lord in the day of trouble shall be saved, that includes Jew or Gentile and these will be the ones to inherit a physical kingdom under their king.
‘And all peoples on earth will mourn because of Him’….

This second group do not mourn in repentance of what they did to their messiah, but because He has come.

In Matt. 24:30 the word to ‘mourn’ is ‘kopto’ meaning ‘to cut’ different to the group above.
Oriental imagery, people still do this today cutting themselves in despair, see 1 Kings 18:28. It becomes an outward expression, they mourn the coming of judgement and fear, not repenting for their wrong-doing and rejection, in fact later on in the book, we find that they do not turn from their wickedness, but instead end up cursing God.

3. The Response (verse 7)
‘So it is to be, Amen’….
Even so Lord come, let it be so….

John is thrilled, because it means the end of the curse and a new beginning without curse, only blessing.
What is your response? Is it the same as John’s response?

4. The Certainty of it (verse 8)
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “Who is and Who was and Who is to come, the Almighty.”
God affirms that it is to be as verse seven states, He is coming.
The divine autograph to confirm that this is a true statement and will happen. God does this by announcing three of His attributes:

His omniscience: “I am the Alpha and Omega” This is the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet.
An alphabet is an ingenious means to store and communicate knowledge. God is stating that He is the beginning and end of all knowledge. If anyone should know what the end will be, its God. If He says it will happen it will happen. We can see historical evidence throughout the bible account that things stated centuries earlier came to pass with superior accuracy than just general statements concerning the judgements given to certain nations (pre-written history). God is the One to know what is to be and has the knowledge of how that will take place when it comes to pass. In Revelation we get a glimpse of what will happen.

His omni-presence: “Who is and Who was and Who is to come.”

God states that He is, was and is to come. He is always eternally present (past, present and future) His presence is not limited to time and space like mankind is.

His kingdom is eternally founded and will not be shaken like mankind’s world is to be and will outlast our world which is set to be consumed.

His Omnipotence: ‘The Almighty’

I am the One who has all power and is in control of all things, in control of it all. If I say it will happen, it will happen.

The One who spoke the universe into existence ‘out of nothing’ is He not able to do it? Is He not able to create a new heaven and a new earth, if He chooses?

When God says He is coming, you better believe it!! He is coming!

Once He came to seek and save, next He is the One to seek and destroy
Once He came to offer Grace and mercy, next He will come to administer final justice.
Once He came to serve, next He will be served.

When dealing with Revelation we need to look into our hearts and lives and ask questions:

Am I ready for this time set to come soon?

Have I prepared myself for this day?

Will I be able to meet Him with a confidence not of myself, but through Christ Jesus?

If you cannot answer these questions then I ask you, what will you do in that day? For there is no guarantee that you will be saved in that day, if He does not return before you die, and everyone dies, then there are no more chances for you, you will stand before Him for judgement.

If this day comes during your lifetime then you may die in the events that take place during this time that fall upon the earth, before you repent and turn. Then again judgement at the white throne is next for you.

When it comes to a certain point in the great tribulation then there are no people turning to repentance, only a wish for it all to end, men will cry out for death. End it, I just want an end!!!

The sad thing is an end will not come, only judgement and the certainty of being forever lost to a place where there is no God to protect man made in His image against those demons who hate God in hell to torment you. Because you reject the creator and had time to repent and did not then there is no hope for you.
He is coming, will you make haste to ready yourself?

For those whom believe can I ask you what you are doing to help prepare others for this day?

“Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your stretcher, and walk.” And immediately the man was healed. And he took up his stretcher and walked. Now this day was the Sabbath.” (John 5:8, 9 CPDV)

Some people, escape the world through books of fiction.  I escape this world, am energized and encouraged through the many books filled with testimonies of people who’s given their hearts wholly to God, to do His good will.

What are your favorite Christian biographies/autobiographies?

A hard mind, on the other hand, bends everything to fit its own view of the world.

I’ve been both ways, but for the past few years I’ve worked on cultivating a softer mind, and I’ve learned a few things in the process.

It can be particularly hard to change our way of thinking but we can do it by making conscious choices, and sometimes it leads to greater happiness. I had a friend once with a hard mind. One time he told me, “Almost everything in my life tells me my way of thinking is wrong, but I’m not going to change it.”

Maybe he’s happy. Who am I to say? But the conversation stayed with me because it struck me as so strange. Does it bring happiness to be at odds with the world? It never has for me.

Recently, this change in thinking has included a new look at Buddhism. A few weeks ago I read a post on Notes from the Bluegrass, one of the blogs I follow, Ok, so I’m not just a Buddhist that really resonated with me. She wrote about her love of certain aspects of Buddhism, but how part of it, that she said could have been a matter of interpretation, “upsets my journey rather than assists it.”

My own journey has been changing lately too. I still have a strong sitting practice, but I’m less sure of Buddhism than before. Mostly this has come about because of spending a lot more time with Buddhists. It’s bringing about the same disillusionment I once felt for Christianity, and I’m beginning to wonder if religion is just a place for hard minds to belong.

Originally, I was drawn to Buddhism, and particularly Zen, because of its acceptance and simplicity. When I expressed that to one Buddhist practitioner, I wasn’t prepared for the attack it brought on.  I was told I didn’t understand. That’s not what the Buddha meant.

And you know what? He was right. I have no idea what the Buddha really meant 3,000 years ago in Bodh Gaya.

I know this though. Meditation helps me stay more present. Through the years, it’s helped me observe better and react less with knee jerk reactions. Simplicity works for me. Plenty of Buddhist scholars expound eloquently on the meaning of dukka or the merits of Theravada versus Mahayana or is Vajrayana closer to the pure practice of Buddhism?  That’s great, but it makes my head spin, and, honestly, I don’t care. Books are wonderful, and some of my best journeys have been through books. They’ve taught me much and I still read voraciously.

But for me, a spiritual practice is different. It’s personal, and it’s between me and whatever power is out there, God or Buddha nature. For some it’s prayer. Others find that connection through chanting. Meditation works for me.

I still love  Zen and will continue to sit,  but I’m not so comfortable identifying myself with a particular religion. I’ve listened to too many arguments, seen too much posturing. And religion seems to bring it out. Once I thought Buddhism was different, but we’re all human and I suppose human nature is just naturally argumentative.

It does bother me that I’m leaning away from another religion simply because a very few individuals have tried to shove it down my throat, but maybe it’s my nature to try to avoid that.

But I’m trying to keep my mind soft and open to even that.

The soft mind is really the stronger of the two because it accepts so much more easily, whereas the hard mind threatens to break when encountering ideas different from his or her own.

How do you nurture a soft mind?

The doctor is a murderer. The trial of Dr. Kermit Gosnell ended with the infamous abortion doctor convicted of three counts of first-degree murder and one count of involuntary manslaughter. The doctor’s abortion clinic, described by a Philadelphia prosecutor as a “house of horrors,” is no more, but the truth revealed in his trial remains. He is not the only one with blood on his hands.

The prosecution of Kermit Gosnell put the entire nation on trial. The doctor was indicted on hundreds of criminal counts, and in addition to the murder and manslaughter convictions he received yesterday, he was also convicted on more than two hundred counts including racketeering, infanticide, and performing abortions that violated Pennsylvania law. Most of those were illegal late-term abortions.

The evidence presented in the trial was gruesome. Investigators told of finding jars filled with parts of dismembered babies. Some of Dr. Gosnell’s co-workers told of seeing the doctor deliver babies alive, then murdering them by snipping their spinal cords with scissors. They told of babies moving their arms and legs and gasping for breath, even making noises as Dr. Gosnell murdered them.

The arrest of Dr. Gosnell in 2011 brought a wave of news coverage. That was not the case with his trial — at least not until public outrage demanded that the press pay more attention. The mainstream media largely ignored the trial, and national attention came only after a concerted effort in social media and on the Internet made inattention to the story nearly impossible.

As Kirsten Powers, writing in USA Today, wrote: “Since the murder trial of Pennsylvania abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell began on March 18, there has been precious little coverage of the case that should be on every news show and front page. The revolting revelations of Gosnell’s former staff, who have been testifying to what they witnessed and did during late-term abortions, should shock anyone with a heart.” She concluded, “The deafening silence of too much of the media, once a force for justice in America, is a disgrace.”

Reluctantly, many major media outlets did start to give the trial attention, but their coverage was often more about the controversy over the coverage of the trial than about the trial itself. A report that appeared in TIME magazine just after Gosnell’s conviction, Kate Pickert and Adam Sorensen argued that “while it wasn’t completely ignored, the Gosnell trial revealed the mainstream media’s hesitancy to swarm a story about a horrifying abortion-related crime.” Later, while arguing that one reason for minimal news coverage of the trial was “the extremely disturbing nature of the crime,” they also acknowledged that “it’s no secret that most journalists are socially liberal.”

This morning, Dr. Gosnell’s murder convictions made the front pages of USA Today and The Wall Street Journal. The story appeared on page A-12 of The New York Times.

Both sides in the nation’s abortion debate agreed that Dr. Gosnell should be convicted and vilified. But pro-abortion forces found themselves continually forced to argue that Dr. Gosnell’s house of horrors was an exception and that abortion is not really at issue in the entire Gosnell trial. They did their best to make that point, but it is an impossible point to make. The babies murdered in Dr. Gosnell’s “clinic” were not visiting a pediatrician. They were born only after so-called “botched abortions.” The entire context was about abortion.

In TIME, Pickert and Sorensen argued that “this was not a case about the morality of legal, late-term abortion.” While the trial was not an open debate about the morality of abortion, that issue is what every thoughtful person recognizes is at stake — which is precisely why the pro-abortion movement had to insist, over and over again, that the morality of abortion is not the issue.

Here is a clue: When you have to argue at every turn that the issue is not abortion, the issue is abortion.

Prosecutors in Pennsylvania announced that they will seek the death penalty for Dr. Gosnell. He now stands convicted of the premeditated and calculated murder of three infants, along with over 200 additional crimes. In his closing argument to the jury, prosecutor Ed Cameron turned to Dr. Gosnell and asked, “Are you human? To med these women up and stick knives in the backs of babies?”

But we must not miss the true meaning of the Gosnell trial. It is true that Dr. Gosnell was found guilty of his crimes — at least the crimes successfully prosecuted in Pennsylvania. But in reality the whole nation was on trial, and we are all guilty.

What the pro-abortion movement fears most is that Americans will pause to consider what this trial really means. It means that Dr. Gosnell would not be on trial for murder if he had killed those three babies while inside their mother’s body. His murder convictions have everything to do with the fact that the abortions were “botched” and the babies were accidentally born alive. Had the abortions been “successful” — even up to the last hours of pregnancy — Dr. Gosnell might have been charged with performing a late-term abortion, but not of murder.

And, speaking of late-term abortions, the abortion rights movement is against all legal restrictions on those as well. They insist on a woman’s unfettered right to an abortion up to the moment of birth.

Even more chillingly, a Planned Parenthood representative recently told a committee of the Florida legislature that even a baby born alive after a failed abortion should have its life or death decided only by its mother and her doctor.

This is America. A nation that has legalized murder in the womb and that now finds itself staring at what abortion really represents. Human dignity cannot survive in a society that insists that a baby inside the womb has no right to live while that same baby, just seconds later, is a murder victim. Respect for human life cannot endure when a baby inside the womb is just a fetus, but when moved only a few centimeters is a full citizen.

The body parts of babies presented as evidence in the Gosnell trial are routinely discarded as “medical waste” outside your local abortion clinic.

What the Gosnell trial revealed is not the exceptional gruesomeness of a single clinic in Philadelphia. It reveals the truth that all Americans are, by our laws, complicit in Dr. Gosnell’s evil. The real scandal is not just the babies murdered outside the womb, but the millions aborted legally — torn apart by blades, suctioned out as waste, poisoned unto death by drugs.

The trial of Dr. Kermit Gosnell revealed the truth about this homicidal doctor and his house of horrors, but it also revealed the moral house of mirrors behind which America hides. Dr. Gosnell is not alone in having the blood of babies on his hands.

I am always glad to hear from readers. Write me at mail@albertmohler.com. Follow regular updates on Twitter at www.twitter.com/albertmohler.

Publication date: May 14, 2013

http://www.christianity.com/christian-life/political-and-social-issues/kermit-gosnell-america-what-his-trial-really-reveals.html?p=0

It is sometimes said Kipling is out of fashion; he has never been in it. Those who see him as some kind of bard of imperialism need to read him with more care. He caught the sense of hubris which prompted remarks like Salisbury’s, and in one of his greatest poems, ‘Recessional’ he hinted at the nemesis which might come:

Nemesis lay here, as he saw it:

Proverbs 21:21
21 Whoever pursues righteousness and kindnesswill find life, righteousness, and honor.

#Bible http://mydailybible.org/dv/esv/2013-05-22.htm

Visit heartlight.org 

http://www.christianity.com/devotionals/heartlight-daily-verse-phil-ware/heartlight-daily-verse-5-or-18-557910.html

Through all the pain and sorrow,
the ones we own, the ones we borrow
the ones we make, the ones we bear
Jesus is always there!

Within all the grief of our tears,
the ones of love, the ones of fears
the ones we cause, the ones we share
Jesus is always there!

During all the trials and tribulations
the ones of hope, the ones of frustrations
the ones we conceal, the ones we declare
Jesus is always there!

In all the uncertainties that lay ahead,
the ones we know, the ones we dread
the ones we risk, the ones we dare
Jesus is always there!

Throughout the storms of this life,
the ones of calm, the ones of strife
the ones we cede, the ones we fare
Jesus is always there!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hebrews 13:5
King James Version

“Let your conversation be without
covetousness; and be content with such things
as ye have: for he hath said, I will never
leave thee, nor forsake thee.”

Copyright 2013
Deborah Ann Belka