Being in the presence of God is going to be in a place of complete and utter happiness and satisfaction. "Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in Thy presence is fulness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for Evermore" (Psalm 16:11).
Then I come to Revelation 8 and read about silence for about the space of half an hour, according to John. With so much joy in Heaven, what would cause the quietness? It's a disturbing scene, because it's not about anythying joyful - it tells of God's judgment against the rebellious ones. With so many wonders and great things going on in Heaven, any period of absolute "silence in Heaven" (8:1) must indicate the awful gravity of what is about to unfold.
We forget that God grieves as well. "As I live, saith the LORD GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?" (Ezekiel 33:11).
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
Monday, February 20, 2006
Good writing for teens
I am getting continually frustrated trying to find good Christian devotionals for the teens in my family and at my school. Many are quick-to-publish journals, with little of no real spiritual meat. Others are so heavy-handed with wordiness that the readers get worn out trying to dig for the point of the lesson.
If anyone has a good straightforward Christian book they've read - not just heard of - I would love to hear from you.
Right now I am working with two publishers on some devotionals and other Christian teen material, but in the meantime, I keep searching for powerful stuff, and I find more celebrity-driven material than straight-from-the-heart writing.
If anyone has a good straightforward Christian book they've read - not just heard of - I would love to hear from you.
Right now I am working with two publishers on some devotionals and other Christian teen material, but in the meantime, I keep searching for powerful stuff, and I find more celebrity-driven material than straight-from-the-heart writing.
Thursday, February 16, 2006
Allowing sin to seep in
History tells us of a close associate of the Christian man Augustine. The friend was Alypius and he was known to absolutely detest the gladiators in combat, as was the sport of the day those many centuries back. His neighbors, we are told, constantly urged and cajoled him to come and watch, just once. He still refused. One day he was physically tricked into going into the amphitheater and forced to sit and watch. Still Alypius' conviction was so strong that he shut his eyes tight against the goings-on. A piercing cry from the arena floor aroused him and he opened his eyes for a moment, seeing the final, fatal wound being given to a gladiator. They say as soon as he saw it, he was changed. He started to get riled up and shouted along with the rest of the mob. His kindness and gentleness left him. They say he became a changed man. Not only did he regularly attend the events from then on, he was one of the greatest proponents of the gladiator contests from that day forward.
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
The Old Man and the Spring
It's been a good day. Last night's Revelation Bible study was powerful. We have some very serious studetns of the Scripture who want to make a difference in their families!
My back is still stiff from the injury last fall, but the pain is a lot less than it has been. I may need to relegate to biking for exercise; running too long seems to add too much stress to my lower back.
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Years ago, a very powerful and much-loved Senate Chaplain gave a story to the many audiences across the country. The man's name was Peter Marshall, and he is still considered one of the most influential Christians in Washington D.C.'s history. He liked to give a little talk about an old man who lived next to a spring in an Austrian village in the Alps.
The little town gave a small sum to the old man to watch over a local spring. The old man loved the spring and took good care of it. He would pull weeds and remove branches from it. He would feed the ducks and swans, and he would skim the surface of the spring. Soon the spring was clean, the wildlife was abundant, and the place was picture-pretty. People came to see the spring and enjoy the scenery, and word got around. Tourists started to visit. Crowds grew, and the little town had a good business going. In fact, it got so good that every business in town benefited from the beautiful spring.
The town leaders were in a meeting, discussing what to do with this new profit coming their way. As they discussed their plans, it was mentioned that the town was paying a stipend to the old man to keep the spring tidy. "What! We could use that money elsewhere. The guy's an old coot, and doesn't need to be messing around with our spring. Let's cut his pay," blasted some of the leaders. So they did.
In fact, they dropped his pay altogether. The man was no longer around to do cleaning, and scum began to grow on the surface. Swans and ducks left, and branches clogged up the spring. People didn't come any more. Businesses lost income. Desperately, the leaders saw their mistake and hired the old man again. After careful cleaning, the town again prospered when the spring was cleaned up. The leaders learned their lesson.
Peter Marshall used this story to talk about the influence of Christians in their local surroundings. He emphasized that people may think you strange and even unlikeable. But what a difference and influence you have! He mentioned that a society without a Godly representative is a sorry society indeed. So, let's take his story to heart; we are an influence on the area around us. Don't lose hope - you are making an influence as you follow the Lord!
My back is still stiff from the injury last fall, but the pain is a lot less than it has been. I may need to relegate to biking for exercise; running too long seems to add too much stress to my lower back.
-----------
Years ago, a very powerful and much-loved Senate Chaplain gave a story to the many audiences across the country. The man's name was Peter Marshall, and he is still considered one of the most influential Christians in Washington D.C.'s history. He liked to give a little talk about an old man who lived next to a spring in an Austrian village in the Alps.
The little town gave a small sum to the old man to watch over a local spring. The old man loved the spring and took good care of it. He would pull weeds and remove branches from it. He would feed the ducks and swans, and he would skim the surface of the spring. Soon the spring was clean, the wildlife was abundant, and the place was picture-pretty. People came to see the spring and enjoy the scenery, and word got around. Tourists started to visit. Crowds grew, and the little town had a good business going. In fact, it got so good that every business in town benefited from the beautiful spring.
The town leaders were in a meeting, discussing what to do with this new profit coming their way. As they discussed their plans, it was mentioned that the town was paying a stipend to the old man to keep the spring tidy. "What! We could use that money elsewhere. The guy's an old coot, and doesn't need to be messing around with our spring. Let's cut his pay," blasted some of the leaders. So they did.
In fact, they dropped his pay altogether. The man was no longer around to do cleaning, and scum began to grow on the surface. Swans and ducks left, and branches clogged up the spring. People didn't come any more. Businesses lost income. Desperately, the leaders saw their mistake and hired the old man again. After careful cleaning, the town again prospered when the spring was cleaned up. The leaders learned their lesson.
Peter Marshall used this story to talk about the influence of Christians in their local surroundings. He emphasized that people may think you strange and even unlikeable. But what a difference and influence you have! He mentioned that a society without a Godly representative is a sorry society indeed. So, let's take his story to heart; we are an influence on the area around us. Don't lose hope - you are making an influence as you follow the Lord!
Monday, February 13, 2006
Nathan and the habit
When I taught Bible classes back in California, we had a little fellow whom everyone loved. His name was nathan and he was a little genius, a little five year old boy who would sit in his classes and listen carefully. He was not a troublemaker - in fact, he was scoring high in reading and comprehensive skills. There was just one problem he had that drove the teachers and his parents crazy. You see, when Nathan would listen to the teachers, he would suck his thumb and twirl his hair.
Twirl his hair...take one finger and wind a thatch of hair on his crown and then unwind it again, over and over and over. Soon his hair in that little fifty-cent piece-size area began to come out by the roots from all the habitual tugging. He was literally going bald in that spot! His parents tried numerous ways to stop Nathan, but to no avail. Finally they had no choice but to shave his hair to a tight crewcut in order to keep him from getting hold on any longer hair.
It doesn't seem like much to just sit and tug once in awhile...but soon that habit gets ingrained and soon although nobody noticed before, the bald spot of sinful habit grows and grows. Unless the habit of sin is stopped, drastic measures might have to be taken...
Twirl his hair...take one finger and wind a thatch of hair on his crown and then unwind it again, over and over and over. Soon his hair in that little fifty-cent piece-size area began to come out by the roots from all the habitual tugging. He was literally going bald in that spot! His parents tried numerous ways to stop Nathan, but to no avail. Finally they had no choice but to shave his hair to a tight crewcut in order to keep him from getting hold on any longer hair.
It doesn't seem like much to just sit and tug once in awhile...but soon that habit gets ingrained and soon although nobody noticed before, the bald spot of sinful habit grows and grows. Unless the habit of sin is stopped, drastic measures might have to be taken...
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