Oh Summer, Where Did You Go?

When I glanced at my calendar this morning, I had to take a second look to be sure I saw the correct date. Yep. What I thought I saw was correct. Today is the final day of August. September begins in just over 12 hours. Where did the summer go?  It seems like it was just yesterday when I turned the calendar to reveal the month of June. Now ... very soon ... I will be doing the same to reveal September.

I don't know about you, but I happen to love summer. Even the hot, humid days don't get to me. I just love to get outdoors ... be outdoors ... no matter the activity. Now with the onset of September, I realize my "outdoor" time will soon be over. Christmas is now less than four months away.

Even though I am a bit disappointed about how quickly the summer "flew" by, I am not surprised. God tells us in James that we are "like a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes" (James 4:14). Hmm. My life is no more than a puff of steam pouring out of a boiling tea pot. Here one moment, gone the next! This is the picture James 4:14 uses to portray our lives. So true. Life is brief. Life moves quickly. Given this reality about our lives, we must beware of wasting our lives (as so many in culture do, engaging in the popular "game" of trivial pursuit). Instead, we must make the most of our time, giving our utmost for God's glory (1 Corinthians 10:31; Ephesians 5:15-16)!

So . . . how about YOU? As your life races by, are you making the most of your opportunities, striving to live for the glory of God's name, the advancement of HIS kingdom and the accomplishment of HIS will?

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

A Memory from a Trip to India

Initially posted on March 8, 2006 after my first trip to India and Children's Fellowship of India

Dr. Gouday

I met many interesting people while in India.  One of which was Dr. Gouday. Every time I would see him, Dr. Gouday would say, “Every day is a good day!”  This grey haired and frail man was, in his prime, the leading leprosy surgeon in central India. Because of his work, he was held in high esteem by his fellow Indians. 

On the last day of the Bible conference at which I was teaching, one of my teammates and I took a seat in the rear of the pavilion. I was surprised to see Dr. Gouday sitting to my left. He looked at me and said, “Every day is a good day!” (I liked the guy’s optimism, but I wondered if he ever had a BAD day). He then went on to tell me that the previous evening at the conference, a woman was bitten by a scorpion. They rushed her to his home where he administered an antidote and she was fine. I asked him if scorpion bites ever proved fatal and he told me “Of course.” Gulp. When my teammate and I heard that, we began watching where we stepped.We did not want to die of a scorpion bite on the far side of the world!

Just as our respect for scorpions grew with Dr. Gouday’s story, so our respect for sin should grow as we read what the Bible has to say about it. Sin is an evil that God hates.And it has a deadly capability to destroy lives. Yet, all too often we dabble with it, toy with it, and bottom line, fail to take it seriously. Friends, beware of sin. Stay as far away from it as possible. Listen to what God tells us.  “In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.” (Romans 6:11-12);  “Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God..” (2 Corinthians 7:1); “Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.” (1 Peter 2:11). Let’s commit to be on the alert for sin and when we see it coming our way, run the other way! And if we do get bitten by it (and this will only happen if WE choose to allow it!), let’s be quick to repent and confess it to God, knowing that “He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9).

Thanks for stopping by . . . 

pj

Steve Jobs and the Life to Come

Steve Jobs, the man who did the most to forge Apple into one of the most valuable companies in the world, announced his resignation from the company last week. After battling pancreatic cancer for several years,  the Apple co-founder has finally acknowledged that he can no longer do the job .... and that the inevitable is fast approaching: death. In the face of this resignation, a number of articles have hit newstands and the web. One of which appears in Esquire and is titled, "Steve Jobs is Dying for Us All."  Michael

Horton, Christian author and blogger (The White Horse Inn Blog) offers some insightful thoughts on the idea of Steve Jobs dying for us all ... 

"Steve Jobs can’t really die for us. In fact, he is, like us all, a prisoner of sin and death. We may have better machines, but we will never emancipate ourselves from sin—and its penalty of death. By affirming death, Jobs proves himself not to be a very orthodox Buddhist. Now, we hope and pray, he will embrace the only solution. This gospel not only saves us from our sins; it saves us from the feverish and ineffectual striving to make something of ourselves, to be something, to become immortal at least in our legacy. Now, we can fulfill our callings—whatever their cultural magnitude—simply out of gratitude to God and love for our neighbors.

It’s not just that our erotic attachment to technology can’t deliver on its transcendent promises, but that even if it could, it wouldn’t really matter. We cannot escape our creaturely finitude—or our sin and death—by our own works or through our own gadgets. It has to come to us from outside, through the creaturely means employed by the Triune God. Cultural progress is great, but “salvation is of the LORD” (Jon 2:9). Death trumps the noblest achievements of our most exceptional neighbors. Even Junod concludes, “We hope and we dream; maybe we even change the world by getting people to hope and dream that the iPhone 5 will come out in September. But we don’t get to choose much of anything, in the end. We succumb.” However, for those who trust in Christ, death does not have the last word. Why? Because God loves this world he created—the real world of real people and real communities and real death and real redemption—more than we do."

Well said, Michael Horton!  

Thanks for stopping by . . . 
pj

A Lesson from The Family Circus

I don’t know about you, but I love the cartoon family of Bill Keane.  Perhaps it is because his “keane” sense of humor is just as keen as mine! :)   In a one of his "so-true-to-life" cartoons, little Billy and his younger brother are watching squirrels scampering about gathering acorns from the ground.  Billy says to his brother, Look at those squirrels.  They’re real busy and they have nuttin’ to do!”

How many of us are real busy doing “nuttin?”  We scurry from one activity to the next while accomplishing little if anything for God and His Kingdom. I encourage you to take some time out and evaluate your life.  Time is too valuable a resource to waste.  Let’s seize the moment and live it Jesus! Before your time of evaluation pray these words: “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12). 

Carpe Diem (Seize the Day)!                         

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

Thursday A La Carte

Welcome to my a la carte offerings for today. My hope is you will find something among these links that will help you in your faith journey with Christ!

1. Tim Challies, quoting much from the writings of A.W. Tozer, writes about our need to regain the church's once lofty view of our majestic God.

2. Whether you teach children in a classroom or your living room, here is a great list containing ten tips for teaching young children about God!

3. Ed Welch of CCEF talks about how to talk to God in this brief article.

4. The Freshman 15 - this often refers to the fifteen pounds an incoming college freshman tends to put on during his or her first semester. Jeff Brewer offers his own list of 15 ways incoming freshman can glorify God as they begin their college career. If you know a college freshman ... send them the list. It's good stuff!!

5. On a lighter note .... if you have ever struggled to learn to speak a second language - you will enjoy this clip from actor Steve Martin as the Pink Panther. 


Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

I Want or I Need?

One of the many lessons that we are trying to teach our two year old granddaughter is the difference between wanting something or needing something (good luck, eh?!). Often while in a store, Ella will see something and say, "I need             "(pretzel, ball, ice cream, etc.). So we then respond in an attempt to help her distinguish between wanting and needing. At this point, I am not sure how much she is getting the distinction. But then again, I know many adults who do not understand the difference.

Given this highly consumeristic society in which we live, I am not surprised that people confuse "wants" with "needs." After all, every single commercial we see on television is designed to get us to spend money we don't have to buy something we don't need to impress people we don't like. As followers of Jesus Christ, we must learn to say "No!" to these enticements, and instead learn to be content with what God provides for us (Philippians 4:12-13). God has promised to meet all of our NEEDS (Philippians 4:19) not necessarily all of our wants.

So how are YOU doing with this? Have you learned to be content? Or are you always wanting just a little bit more?

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

FREEEEDOM!

706 years ago today (back in 1305), Scottish leader and national hero, William Wallace, was executed in London. Now the name William Wallace might not mean a lot to you ... but let me give you a hint: Mel Gibson. For it was Mel Gibson's portrayal of Wallace in the film, Braveheart, that introduced this Scotsman to our generation. 


The story of Wallace is a story of an underdog leading a bunch of other underdogs in a fight against a tyrannical and superior oppressor (in this case, the English King Edward I). Although Wallace led the Scots in several stunning victories, he eventually was captured and brutally executed. But his death did not end Scotland's desire to oppose English rule ... and Scotland went on to maintain its independence. 


The closing scene of the film is quite striking ... and sums up the passion of Wallace (at least as portrayed in the movie). As he is being tortured .... and on the doorstep of death .... with perhaps his dying breath -- he summons up his last bits of energy and screams out the word, "FREEEEEEDOM!"  Freedom is what he lived for, fought for and ultimately died for. In this way, Wallace reminds me of another man whose life on this earth was cut short by suffering a violent death. Of course, I am thinking of Jesus Christ. Jesus came to set mankind free. Free from a tyrannical oppressor. Free from a cruel bondage. 


Jesus makes reference to this freedom in the eighth chapter of the gospel of John. There he tells his listeners, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. ³² Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  


How about YOU? Have you experienced this freedom that Jesus talks about here? Or are  you still in bondage to your sin? True freedom comes from embracing the gospel! I hope and pray that if you have not done so ... that you will do so today! Remember ... there are two ways to live - and you have to choose one of them! Only one of these leads to true FREEDOM! 


Thanks for stopping by . . . 


pj