First Love

So, like, umm, have you been busy lately? It's a good thing we have our phones and computers to help us meet our busy schedules, right?

The computers that once filled entire buildings now sit on our laps or are worn on our wrists. The phones that once sat on countertops or hung on walls are now in our pockets.

Our flatscreen televisions of today would seem like science fiction compared to the console models that contained radios and record players. In short, we have made it really easy for us to become distracted. From what? God.

In John's Book of Revelation Jesus tells the church in Ephesus that they have "forgotten their first love." That's Jesus. And we have done the same.

"You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. " - Revelation 2:4-5

And just to be clear, having Jesus come and "remove our lampstand" is NOT a good thing.

Our "first love" should be Jesus, God. And we truly have forgotten Him it seems. We tend to worship ourselves and our "things." Or we might worship A god, but not THEE God. And if we don't like the One True God, we just change him to our liking. We create our own versions of god.

For example, our current president, Joe Biden, claims to be a Catholic. Yet he is in favor of abortion and same-sex marriage. How can THAT be? Isn't he modifying the god he believes in for a political purpose?

And, speaking of Catholics, the Pope has come out and said that priests can "bless" same sex marriages now. Even though the Lord, Our God, would never do this. He calls same-sex sex an abomination.

"You shall not lie with a man as with a woman; it is an abomination." - Leviticus 18:22

Our first love should not be ourselves nor should it be our own selfish desires. Do you remember "the first and greatest commandment?"

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself." - Mark 12:30-31

We have become so incredibly focused on ourselves and our own desires that we truly have forgotten our first love - Jesus.

So how do we correct that?

The first thing we must do is examine ourselves. Make note of the parts of our lives that are not honoring to God and eliminate them.

Next, we need to change the focus of our lives. Quit reading the news and read the Bible. Stop worshipping "reality" and DIY shows and make worship a reality in our lives. Change the direction of our lives and set our G.P S. to G.O.D.

It's doable, but is it likely? Sadly, I don't think so. Not for society anyway. But it's not too late for us indivisuals to make a change. But a time is coming when it WILL be too late.

Place Jesus first in your life today. He loves you! He loved you before the creation of the world. And He died so that you may live. Live in Him . . . the Love you had at first.

The Finger of God

Sometimes I think we forget about the incredible power of God. The things that He has done, and has yet to do. He can speak and destroy entire armies, divide the waters of the Red Sea, and create the sun, moon and stars, etc. Yet He is "small" enough to answer our individual prayers.

For example, there are four instances in the Bible of God "writing with His finger." The first is located in the Book of Exodus when Moses was sending plagues on Egypt. Pharaoh's magicians could not duplicate the plagues sent forth by God and exclaimed, "This is the finger of God."

The second is found in the Book of Exodus when God wrote His law on two tablets of stone.

"When the Lord finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, He gave him the two tablets of the covenant law, the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God." - Exodus 31:18

This is also duplicated in Deuteronomy and the twin account of God writing on the tablets of stone.

The fourth and final mention of God's finger is in the Book of Luke. Jesus just got done freeing a blind and mute man from a demon. Jesus said this to His critics:

 "If I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you." - Luke 11:20

I mention these things for two reasons. 1.) To remind us of the unmistakable power of Almighty God. God is spirit and has no fingers. "The finger of God" speaks to His immeasurable power. 2.) With all this incredible power at His command in mind, now read this:

"The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.  But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger." - John 8:3-6

Was this Jesus telling the Pharisees that HE was God by writing with His finger as a hint? Was He demonstrating how it was God Himself who wrote "the law of Moses," with His own "finger" and now Jesus was doing the same?

No one knows exactly what Jesus wrote on the ground or why He did so. But isn't it interesting to see the finger of God actually working?

Honestly, I think Jesus was just patiently giving the Pharisees the opportunity to realize their OWN sin.

"Let he who is without sin cast the first stone." - John 8:7

We are ALL sinners. We have no power to change things like He can. Repent and believe in Jesus. He can absolutely change YOU. And the interesting thing is, He already knows whether or not you will allow Him to do so.

Cardinal Love

[Inspired by a friend . . . my 2023 Christmas story.]

Do you have a bird feeder in your yard? We do. My wife and I love to watch the birds, especially our chickadees and cardinals.

We do nice things for our little bird buddies so that they will continue to linger outside our sunroom windows. We feed them sunflower seeds and we have a bird bath for them to drink out of and bathe in. We also have lilac bushes to provide them with protective cover.

Our favorite birds are a pair of cardinals that visit our feeder. Or should I say 'used to.' A few years ago we noticed that the female cardinal was missing. Something had happened to her – a predator maybe, disease, unknown.

Cardinals mate for life. They would always come to the feeder around sunset. Mr. Cardinal watched from a tree branch above while Mrs. Cardinal ate. And she always ate first.

It was sad to watch Mr. Cardinal sitting in the lilac bush, all by his lonesome, after he lost the love of his life. This year though we have a pair of cardinals again. It could be a new pair I guess, but I like to think that maybe Mr. Cardinal found someone new.

It is said that whenever we see a cardinal, after a loved one of ours dies, it is some sort of angel visiting us. I don’t believe in that kind of thing. But I do think of lost ones whenever I do see a lone cardinal.

It's easy to picture the male cardinal as a type of Jesus, don't you think? He’s always watching out from above for the benefit of His bride, the Church. There are lots of predators out there these days, seeking after an easy meal to devour. That 'meal' would be us - Christians living in a secular world.

"Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you." - James 4:8

The people that God has placed in our lives are there for a reason - to love. None of them is perfect, and neither are we. But God's command is clear.

"Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another." - John 13:34

Interesting. Twice in one verse Jesus tells us to love one another. Hmm. Maybe that's important.

So, that is my prayer for you this Christmas. May you draw nearer to God this year than you ever have before. May you 'love one another' better than ever, like Mr. Cardinal loves his bride, and like Jesus loves His Church.

And may you get yourselves a bird feeder for YOUR backyard as well. By doing something nice for someone else, whether for birds or for humans, you will find that YOU are the one who is being blessed.

Merry Christmas! Love you all.

The River That Flows

Here's a puzzle for ya. How can something that is dead be brought back to life again? No, this isn't a story about the resurrection of Jesus. Well, it kind of is, but it isn't. This is a prophetic story about the Dead Sea. And how it will one day be "born again."

The Dead Sea is pictured above. And it IS truly dead. Nothing lives in it. And that isn't snow you're seeing in the picture. It's salt. It is SO salty that nothing can live in the sea or even near it.

If you look at a map of Israel you will notice that the Dead Sea is east of Jerusalem. The Jordan River flows southward into the Dead Sea. Water flows in but it just evaporates, leaving all the mineral deposits behind.

There are intermittent streams that do flow eastward from the area around Jerusalem but nothing permanent or continual.

I was reading in the Book of Ezekiel and came across this prophecy about the Dead Sea.

"The man brought me back to the entrance to the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east)." - Ezekiel 47:1

A couple of interesting things to note here. 1.) There is currently no temple in Jerusalem. 2.) Water flowed eastward. How is that possible when the Jordan River (east of Jerusalem) is flowing north to south?

Are you ready for this? This is from the prophet Zechariah. It hasn't happened yet. None of this has.

"On that day His feet (the feet of Jesus) shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward." - Zechariah 4:14

Hmm. Suddenly there will be a valley running east and west out of Jerusalem. Ezekiel tells us, again in chapter 47 verse 1 that the water came out from under the temple on the south side then flowed to the east.

"The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar." - Ezekiel 47:1

Later in Chapter 47 Ezekiel is still with this "man" and his measuring rod. As they walk eastward the water keeps getting deeper and deeper. And then we read this about the Dead Sea.

"Then he led me back to the bank of the river. When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. He said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, where it enters the Dead Sea. When it empties into the sea, the salty water there becomes fresh. Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live." - Ezekiel 476-9

This is all prophetic. This will all happen in the future, and some say that it will happen soon. But this is also a picture of a nonbeliever coming to faith in Christ. And "The River" is Jesus. When Jesus enters us it is WE who become clean and fresh.

"Where the river (Jesus) flows, everything will live."

“If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” - John 4:10

“Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” - John 7:37-38

Is there living water flowing out of you?

Four Words

The Christian faith can seem rather complex if we look at the number of pages in the Bible. The Greek, Aramaic, and Hebrew translations of millenia-old texts can be daunting. People have studied it for their entire lives and will tell you that they can only grasp a fraction of its meaning. Yet, it can be summed up in just four little words.

This is the season that the whole world celebrates the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. Talk about something hard to understand. The Jewish religious leaders of Jesus' day were looking for a mighty king who could lead them in victory over the oppressive Roman Empire. They weren't expecting a baby to lead them.

Yet, today, the Roman Empire is long gone and Christianity remains. It seems as if Jesus was right. He sits at the right hand of God the Father this very day.

Our faith in Jesus is the key to our being with Him in heaven one day. And although the Bible tells us to "believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved" (Acts 16:31),  belief must be accompanied by repentance and surrender or it is useless.

The following Christmas song contains a powerful chorus and is the source of the title for this story - four words. Those four words are an instruction to us and the key to unlocking heaven's door. Those words are . . .

Fall . . .

On . . .

Your . . .

Knees.

Listen to this song and see if you don't get chills hearing those four little words in a most powerful way.

O, Holy Night - Lindsey Stirling

[Note: Lindsey Stirling is a Mormon. Mormons do not believe in the same Jesus that Christians do. To learn more about Mormon beliefs click here]

The Mannerism Tapes?

If you watched the Green Bay Packers upset the Kansas City Chiefs a few weeks ago you are probably familiar with Keisean Nixon and the interception he made off Patrick Mahomes to save the victory for the Pack. But what you may not know is just how he was able to accomplish it.

In a post-game interview, Nixon told a reporter, "We watched the mannerism tapes earlier in the week. He (Moore #24) tapped his knee." This was a signal to QB Patrick Mahomes that he was going to modify his pass route.

This signal was noted in the Packers' 'mannerism tapes' and Nixon recognized it on the field. He KNEW what play they were going to run. What an advantage!

Think about that for a moment. Humans studied their opponent's signs and actions  to take advantage of them.

Do you think Satan does anything like that with us? Of course he does. He's 'in our head' before even WE are. He plants thoughts in our heads and leads us in directions and actions that God does not want us taking.

"Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." - 1 Peter 5:8

If human beings can trap us and take advantage of our thoughts and desires, Satan surely can as well. Be alert!

If someone analyzed OUR tendancies, what would they find? The hidden, secret desires we don't want anyone to know about? We need to examine ourselves (2 Corinthians 13:5), find our sinful desires, and purge the evil from within us.

The Book of Deuteronomy, the book Jesus quoted from the most, uses the phrase 'purge the evil from among you' nine times. Do you think that maybe God wants us to not have any evil within us?

What if we turned the tables on the Devil, studied HIS tendancies, and turned his evil plans into living for God's glory instead?

Game over!

Keisean Nixon Interview

Terminator-R-Us

[Today's story comes to you from my living room chair, written mostly at 1:00 AM, after being hatched in my night time thoughts while in bed. All without waking my wife.]

Background: The Ten Commandments. Specifically, commandments one, two and nine.

"You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself any graven image. You shall not bear false witness." - Exodus 20:3,4,16

#9 - Lies: Seemingly every day we hear and read news stories about Artificial Intelligence (AI). The CEO of Sports Illustrated just got fired for using AI-generated stories "written" by fake authors. That's just one story. 

#4 Image: Numerous companies are creating AI robots (humanoids, canine, etc.) The image above is just one of many.

#2 Gods: As AI becomes more powerful and more prevalent in our society, it will gain more power. It will take over jobs from humans (already happening) and begin making decisions faster than we humans can (also already happening). Soon, if not already, AI will be making decisions without our knowledge or input.

That brings us, and our species, to our conclusion and verse 23 of Romans 6.

"The wages of sin is death." - Romans 6:23

AI's "brain" is the Internet. It grows more knowledgeable every second. And with multiple articles published regarding man's role in "climate change,' like the one linked at the bottom, it won't be long before AI determines that WE are the problem. A plan will be formulated, put into action, and suddenly there will be another pandemic with an AI-generated "vaccine" already prepared for us. And the machines will rule.

But...

"Among the gods there is none like you, Lord; no deeds can compare with yours.

All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, Lord; they will bring glory to your name.

For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God." - Psalm 86:8-10

After all, Jesus said, "I'll be back," long before Arnold did (John 14:3).

UK Greenhouse Gas Study

The Act of Worship

Today's story is about worship. What it is, how we do it, what it has become, and what it is supposed to be. Let's begin with a passage of scripture.

Here we have Jesus talking with a man who was born blind, Jesus having healed him.

“Do you believe in the Son of Man?” He answered, “And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you.” He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him." - John 39:35-38

What IS worship? The formerly blind man did not simply plug in his keyboard and start playing a hymn.

'Worship' is defined this way by Merriam Webster: to honor or show reverence for as a divine being or supernatural power.

Their definition continues: to regard with great or extravagant respect, honor, or devotion.

Worship is not a song. It is not simply singing. But it CAN be. Confused?

Let's go back to that scripture. What do you think the blind man did when he could suddenly see for the first time ever?

My guess is that he dropped to his knees and began praising Jesus for what He had done for him. Remember, Jesus had just told the man who He was - the Son of Man.

If we should find ourselves in the presence of the Son of Man, what would WE do?

Jesus told the woman at the well, “True worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” - John 4:23-24

Simply singing a song to God is not worship. But singing it with your spirit, with your heart, is.

Sometimes in church we are simply singing the words that are printed on the screen or in the hymnal. That's not worship. But if the words that we sing are sung with deep meaning in our hearts, and are directed to and for God, they become worship.

ANYTHING we do to honor God CAN be an act of worship. We must first ask ourselves WHY am I doing this?

Jesus MUST be part of everything we do or we are not honoring God with it. Right?

Example: Buying a meal for a homeless man is not worship. But, if the reason we are doing it is to glorify God, then it IS worship. Sit down with the man as he eats and tell him what Jesus can do in his life.

May we bring glory to God in ALL things as we rejoice in the celebration of His coming. Glory to God!

Glory to God Forever

Hold On Loosely

"I've learned to hold all things loosely, so that God will not have to pry them out of my hands." - Corrie ten Boom

Great words to remember from a Holocaust survivor. And just to prove that her words are timeless, here's a similar quote from the band 38 Special.

"If you cling too tightly, you're gonna lose control."

The point here is that if we cherish anything too much it will become an idol to us, and a stumbling block. And if we have any "idols" other than God it is a sin and He WILL take them away from us.

"Thou shalt have no other gods before Me." - Exodus 20:3

We must constantly examine ourselves and our habits. Are we consuming ANYTHING that God might consider an idol?

What about the Green Bay Packers? Their recent success has a lot of people excited. However, if we are praying that the pastor's Sunday sermon would end on time so that we can make it to a watch party before kickoff, we've got a problem. 

When I was younger I used to consume two 16-oz bottles of Mountain Dew every day. I am now Type 2 diabetic. Is that God's doing? To take away my idol?

How about my phone? My computer? The television? Relationships? Work? Our politics? Even church duties can take us away from God.

The only thing we are supposed to hold on tightly to is God Himself. Worship, praise, and devotion are to be His.

I am reminded of a song that we sing in church. It goes like this:

"Turn your eyes upon Jesus,

Look full in His wonderful face,

And the things of earth will grown strangely dim,

In the light of His glory and grace."

We need to remember that in our walk with Jesus, in our worship of Him, and in our daily lives, HE is the One who created us. And why did He do that? So that we would honor, praise and worship HIM, not "things of earth."

Hold on Loosely - 38 Special 

Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus - Alan Jackson

Aliens

What I am about to tell you may seem a little strange. Many will not believe me despite all of the evidence, but here goes....

There are aliens living on earth. Right now.

And I am one of them.

Perhaps you're laughing at this news. "Oh, he's an alien alright." Lol! Well, I'M not laughing. And neither is the rest of our army.

We kind of blend in with the crowd but, if you watch us for a while, you can tell we're not like most Earthlings.

Our leader has given us very specific instructions about our mission here. We are not going to kill anyone, but many of you will die. Such is the way of war.

Our goal is to take as many of you captive as we can. We will not use force. It is not our way. You will actually come willingly, once your mind has been transformed to our way of thinking.

Resistance is futile. And though many WILL try, you cannot kill us. We have a power beyond death.

Our leader came to you people once before, but you wouldn't listen. Foolish people. That was two millenia ago. He came to earth with his life or death offer. You refused him then, you will refuse now.

Your chance to surrender is coming to an end. You have been warned! This is tiur final chance.

“Now therefore, our God, We thank You
And praise Your glorious name. But who am I, and who are my people, That we should be able to offer so willingly as this? For all things come from You, And of Your own we have given You. For we are aliens and pilgrims before You, As were all our fathers; Our days on earth are as a shadow." - 1 Chronicles 29:13-15

"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will." - Romans 12:2

Philistia

I learned something new a few weeks ago that made this whole Hamas vs. Israel thing WAY easier to understand. History, it seems, is a great teacher.

If you Google the history of Palestine you will find this by Britannica.com

"The word Palestine derives from Philistia, the name given by Greek writers to the land of the Philistines."

Yes, the "Palestinians" of today are decended from the Philistines - arch enemies of Israel, long before even David and Goliath (11th century BC).

The Philistines were destroyed as a nation by Nebuchadnezzar (Persian Empire, aka Iran) in the late 5th century BC.

Palestinians were not called Palestinians until 1964.

God promised the land that the Palestinians claim today to Israel (Abraham) LONG before that (2000-1500 BC).

"Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” - Genesis 12:6-7

The Israel we know today was restablished back in 1948. The Palestinians of today weren't even labeled as such until 1964. So, who's land is Gaza?

There is much talk these days about a "two-state solution" - one for Israel and the other for the Palestinians. It will never work. A "two-state solution" is a dream created by politicians.

Hamas wants Israel wiped out and Israel wants the same for Hamas. Sadly, this battle has been going on for thousands of years and will likely continue until the Lord returns.

Still, let us pray for Israel, God's chosen people. May His will be done.

The Heart of The Matter

There is one single question that everyone must answer at some point in their lives. The answer we give determines our future. And that question depends on our beliefs about God.

And not just ANY god, but Jesus, and the God of the Bible.

You might say, "There are many gods. Why be so limiting? Shouldn't people be allowed to follow whichever god they wish?"

In America, we ARE allowed to follow whatever religion and god we wish to follow. All I am saying is that there is only one God, Jesus, that has a future worth living.

The heart of the matter, the question that needs to be answered, is what do we believe about Jesus. Was He the Son of God? Did He really die for our sins? And is His offer of eternal life a valid one?

If you listen to the song at the end of this story you will hear Don Henley sing this:

"I've been trying to get down to the heart of the matter, but my will gets weak and my thoughts seem to scatter, but I think it's about forgiveness."

Forgiveness. THAT is a huge difference between Jesus and all of the other "gods." To my knowledge, there is no other god who offers to do that. The heart of the matter is do you believe that?

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." - 1 John 1:9

The Heart of The Matter - Don Henley

To Be Chosen

When I was in high school gym class our gym teacher would pick two captains and let them pick the teams. They picked their friends and teammates first, then the guys they didn't know anything about. That was me.

It sucked, waiting to be chosen. Everyone picked before me was just a way of saying, "I think they're better than you."

With God however, there is no such feeling. Rather, there is a feeling of disbelief.

"Really? God chose me?"

This is not going to be a Calvinism vs. Arminianism story. Rather it is a telling of how God DOES INDEED chose people. Here's a few examples.

“You are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.” - Deuteronomy 7:6

"In these days He (Jesus) went out to the mountain to pray, and all night He continued in prayer to God. And when day came, He called His disciples and chose from them twelve, whom He named apostles." - Luke 6:12-13

God chooses people. Which also means that God does NOT choose others. And we interact with them every day. How do we handle that?

But God doesn't want anyone to perish.

"The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." - 2 Peter 3:9

The question then becomes WHO is "anyone?" Anyone on the planet? Or any one of those He has chosen. I have no idea.

God is omnipresent. That means He exists outside of time. He knows what you're eating for breakfast tomorrow. He knows when your children will finakly come to repentance and place their faith in Jesus.

We should ALL be grateful . . . to be chosen.