What Happens to Babies When They Die?

From time to time I get asked the question about the eternal destiny of infants and toddlers who die. "Do they go to heaven?" is how the question is usually worded. Below is an answer given to this question by John Piper. I believe his answer is worthy of consideration. Please take a moment and view the video. And thanks for stopping by ...

pj

Getting Rid of Clutter!

I spent about an hour this past Saturday cleaning up in my back yard (the snow had finally made enough of a retreat that I was able to get out and about!). You might be wondering just what I was cleaning up? My five heritage river birch trees (which have grown very nicely since I planted them five years ago) had decided during the winter months to shed a large number of branches. These branches ranged in size from small twigs to a few really sizeable branches. So it took me quite some time to gather them up (and on Sunday morning my back reminded me of my Saturday afternoon effort).

Just as I cleaned up the back yard of these fallen branches that were littering the ground, so we must "clean up" our hearts from time to time of the clutter that gathers there. If we fail to do this, all the accumulated "stuff" can threaten to crowd God out. This clutter might be sin ... and if so we must repent of it and confess it (knowing that when we confess our sins to God he is "faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness" - 1 John 1:9). But the clutter might be things that are not actually sinful in and of themselves. The book of Hebrews refers to this kind of clutter as "everything that hinders" (see Hebrews 12:1-2). This could include TV watching, a fanaticism with a certain sports team, consumerism or a whole host of other things. Let me encourage you to take some time, if not today - tomorrow - to take a look into your heart. Ask yourself (and ask the Spirit of God to help you with this) if there is any clutter you need to "clean up" so that God won't get pushed out!

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

Have YOU Encouraged Someone (Anyone) Today?

Yesterday our family got together for lunch to celebrate my oldest daughter's birthday and my birthday - both of which occur this week. In the process, we carried out several birthday traditions such as candles on the cake (or pie in my case) and the giving of birthday cards and gifts. One additional birthday tradition that we as a family have established over the years is to encourage and affirm the birthday celebrant. We do this by going around the table as each of us say something to encourage the birthday person. Tears, smiles and lots of laughter have made this tradition a family favorite. 

This morning, as I reflected on this particular tradition, two thoughts struck me. First, I am so very glad we do this. It has blessed me (and the rest of my family) in a HUGE way. In this harsh world in which we live, who among us doesn't need a good dose of encouragement? The second thought that struck me was this: I don't do this enough! Why only encourage once a year at a birthday celebration? Now I am not saying that I totally fail to encourage my family members at other times ... but I will confess that I don't do it nearly enough! Especially given the mandate in God's Word that we are to "encourage one another daily, as long as it is called 'Today'" (Hebrews 3:13). So I want to go on record to say ... with God's help I am going to strive to become more intentional about encouraging others. And I plan to start right now (by sending an encouraging email to someone). Won't you join me? Let's become true encouragers! For Jesus' sake!

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

Praying God-Centered Prayers

When Jesus was asked by his disciples to teach them to pray, he responded by giving them what is most commonly referred to as "the Lord's Prayer" and sometimes as "the Prayer of Jesus." The NIV text of this prayer reads as follows:

   "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come,  your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one" (Matthew 6:9-13 - and some later manuscripts add the words, "for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.").

Now I could write for quite some time on all the insights into how we should pray that are given is this rich teaching of our Lord. But I will restrain myself and point out only one truth - and a powerful truth it is! Notice Jesus gives us 6 petitions (and keep in mind that Jesus gives us this prayer primarily as a model or pattern for all of our prayers). Of these 6, the first three deal with God (his name, his kingdom, his will). The last three deal with us and our needs (need for daily bread, forgiveness and protection in the spiritual arena). Now what this tells me is that when we pray and present our requests to God - we need to go about it in a God-centered way. So as we ask God for healing for Sue's lower back pain or ask him to provide a job for George - we need to ask him to do so in such a way that his name will be honored, his kingdom will be advanced and that his will be done. That's what I mean by the title of this posting. That's how to pray "God-centered prayers."

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

Honesty the Best Policy!

Abdul Qayyum (and I am glad I am just writing that name!) was an inmate at Guantanamo Bay prison from 2001 until his release to the Afghan government in 2007. He was originally captured by U.S. forces during their 2001 invasion of Afghanistan and war against the Taliban. Abdul was a Taliban leader at the time. Recently, Afghan and U.S. intelligence has confirmed that Abdul is now a high ranking Taliban leader in Afghanistan, playing a key role in the Taliban resistance against U.S. and Afghan forces. Now you might be wondering why he was released from his imprisonment. According to the military transcript of his hearing, he said, "I want to go back home and join my family and work in my land and help my family." The authorities bought his story ... and that's exactly what is was - a story!

Hind sight is definitely 20-20! Abdul's rejoining of the Taliban shows that he had no real intention of going back to Afghanistan to live a quiet life helping his family. The man was "lying through his teeth!" But before we quickly point fingers at him and condemn him for his dishonesty - shouldn't we look in our mirror? How many of us are guilty of dishonesty? How often are we guilty of telling a "little white lie" or "stretching" or "misrepresenting" the truth?  God is clear. We are to "put off falsehood and speak truthfully to our neighbors" (Ephesians 4:25) and we are to "let our 'yes' be 'yes' and our 'no,' 'no'" (Matthew 5:37).  So how HONEST are you?

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

An Unsuitable Suit

When is a suit "unsuitable?" When it happens to be the suit worn by O.J. Simpson during the murder trial of his ex-wife and her friend. Apparently, as a result of some court settlement, the tailored tan suit seen by millions of viewers around the world had been offered to the Smithsonian Institute for its collect of American historical artifacts. The museum refused the donation of the suit, deeming it inappropriate for its collection. Way to go, Smithsonian for recognizing an unsuitable suit when offered one!

For those of us who are followers of Christ, we too must be on the lookout for "unsuitable suits." By this I mean some of the stuff we "wear" as we live out our lives. Stuff that we really do need to get rid of .... stuff that Paul lists in Colossians 3. Some things on his list include the following: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, greed, idolatry, anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy and dishonest language (see vv. 5-8). These things are unsuitable for those of us who claim Jesus as our Lord. In their place we are called upon to clothes ourselves with "compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience" (Colossians 3:12). Let's determine to "wear" what's suitable for followers of the King!

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

A Lesson from Lincoln

One of my favorite "leisure" activities is to read history. Currently I am reading a survey of American history. I just wrapped up the Civil War era. As I read about this great struggle that almost tore our nation apart, I was struck by the man who, probably more than anyone else, was responsible for the Union surviving. Abraham Lincoln might have entered the Presidency as a lowly regarded lawyer from Illinois, but by the time of the assassination just a few years later, the vast majority of Americans realized that he was a true giant of his time (and he was tall, measuring 6' 4" which was quite unusual in his day). Lincoln's genius can be seen in so many ways, but all one has to do to encounter it first hand is to read the words of his Gettysburg Address. These remarks were given by the President only because the organizers of the event thought it would be appropriate to invite the President and give him a chance to say a few things to the assembled crowd. After all, the great orator of the day, Edward Everett was to give the keynote speech (which lasted some two hours!) Yet how many of us can recall one line from Everett's speech given that day? In contrast, Lincoln's two minute address has been memorized by school children down through the decades! It is arguably one of the greatest speeches ever given on American soil.

Now I know there is a myth "out there" that Lincoln hastily scribbled out the notes of his speech on an envelope as he rode the train from Washington to Gettysburg. But this is simply not true. Lincoln spent days preparing his speech, which was his normal approach to any speech. Lincoln knew the importance of words. He understood, given the context of the war, that every speech he gave would be analyzed and evaluated by friend and foe alike (and everyone in between!).  Therefore, he would agonize over everything he said and everything he wrote.

I wish we would all learn from his example. Way too often, we put our tongues in gear while our brains are still in neutral. The Bible tells us to be "quick to listen and slow to speak" (James 1:19). Let's all make an intentional effort TODAY to practice this wise counsel from God's Word!

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj