The Written Word
"Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. They give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God's promises." (Romans 15:4 NLT)
With computers and word processors, we take the written word for granted. It is so easy to create and duplicate documents. Many are not even sending their computer documents to paper anymore. They simply email them to others or burn them onto CDs to distribute. Everyone I know is able to read; some in more than one language. We live in an advanced and educated society.
Words written today not only affect thinking today, they can have a profound affect on future generations. However, not all written works will go down in history as profound. With the Internet, anyone is able to publish their own work online. Many use web logs or blogs to do just that. Their thoughts, profound or not, are placed in cyberspace for all to read.
The Bible was written almost two thousand years ago. God instructed many to write an account of their time in history. Their words were painstakingly written, letter by letter, for others to read. The printing press and copy machine was yet to be invented. Very few had written documents to read. But then again, most people could not even read.
The beginning of our Bible was used to instruct the Jews in their history and law. It gave them encouragement as they waited patiently for God’s promises. Those who have yet to accept Jesus as the Messiah still wait. Paul’s letters were used as current instructional material. They were like the tape recorder or CD of a message sent to another church today. Other believers listened to the words read from his letter and were encouraged in their walk with Christ. The Gospels were written to tell the story of Jesus and His walk on earth as a man.
Everything in the Bible, from beginning to end, has a purpose. I believe it is the inspired Word of God. As we delve into His Word, He shows us little pieces which relate to us. He reveals to us that which we are ready to see. His words give each of us hope and encouragement. The key is to take the time each day to read them.
Sunday, November 20, 2005
Monday, November 14, 2005
Get Out of the Box!
"No one else dared to join them, though everyone had high regard for them." (Acts 5:13 NLT)
Most of us grew up in a family filled with traditions. Some traditions came about because of life circumstances. For example, ours is a blended family with children from both my wife and I. As they were growing up in our house, the holidays could have been disastrous with both sets of parents demanding equal time on each holiday. We established a tradition of having them at our house for Thanksgiving and allowed them to go to their other parents for Christmas.
Some grew up in homes where the tradition was to attend church every Sunday. Others had a Christmas and Easter tradition instead. Church may have even been fun, but it was a tradition to attend. It really did not have anything to do with a walk with the Lord or a relationship with God the Father. The Holy Spirit was not involved and perhaps never even mentioned except at the end of the Lord’s Prayer or the Our Father, depending on your tradition.
My wife was healed in 1991 from an incurable disease. One miraculous touch and our church traditions went out the window. We moved from our traditional weekly experience to places supporting our newfound belief and encouraging our relationship with our Lord and Savior.
Others saw what had happened in our life, but stayed in the box they had always been. Like this verse, no one else dared join us even though each had seen what had happened, even though they saw her healed. Most of them continue to go to their traditional Sunday services. What about you? Isn’t it time to take a chance on Jesus and step out of the box?
"No one else dared to join them, though everyone had high regard for them." (Acts 5:13 NLT)
Most of us grew up in a family filled with traditions. Some traditions came about because of life circumstances. For example, ours is a blended family with children from both my wife and I. As they were growing up in our house, the holidays could have been disastrous with both sets of parents demanding equal time on each holiday. We established a tradition of having them at our house for Thanksgiving and allowed them to go to their other parents for Christmas.
Some grew up in homes where the tradition was to attend church every Sunday. Others had a Christmas and Easter tradition instead. Church may have even been fun, but it was a tradition to attend. It really did not have anything to do with a walk with the Lord or a relationship with God the Father. The Holy Spirit was not involved and perhaps never even mentioned except at the end of the Lord’s Prayer or the Our Father, depending on your tradition.
My wife was healed in 1991 from an incurable disease. One miraculous touch and our church traditions went out the window. We moved from our traditional weekly experience to places supporting our newfound belief and encouraging our relationship with our Lord and Savior.
Others saw what had happened in our life, but stayed in the box they had always been. Like this verse, no one else dared join us even though each had seen what had happened, even though they saw her healed. Most of them continue to go to their traditional Sunday services. What about you? Isn’t it time to take a chance on Jesus and step out of the box?
Saturday, November 12, 2005
Unlimited Resources
"I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit." (Ephesians 3:16 NLT)
When our computer starts to run slower and slower, one of the things we need to look at is the amount of hard disk space left. With these new digital cameras, it is easy to use up the bytes quickly. The pictures we upload take up to one megabyte each. When we upload one hundred pictures after that last party, we have another one hundred megabytes filled.
This is like my desk. The daily snail mail seems to accumulate at an every increasing pace. Before I realize it, my desk is loaded and I have to push paper around to find things. My desk needs defragging as much as my hard drive! The desk is only so big and my hard drive has limits, too. It would be great to have an unlimited amount of hard disk space so whatever we wanted to save would fit.
Everything has a limit. We can only fit so much on our computer. Our car’s trunk can only fit so much stuff. a credit cards has a limit, too. When reached, we cannot use it anymore and may even be embarrassed at a checkout counter when we have to come up with the cash.
God has no limit. His resources are unlimited. Whatever we need, He can supply and all we have to do is ask. If our request lines up with His will, He promises to supply it. He does not send it by UPS or FedEx. They are quick to deliver the items we purchase over the Internet. God does not have to fulfill our request long distance. He gave each believer the Holy Spirit; Christ within. The Holy Spirit lives in us and gives us the inner strength to accomplish anything He has for us to do.
"I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit." (Ephesians 3:16 NLT)
When our computer starts to run slower and slower, one of the things we need to look at is the amount of hard disk space left. With these new digital cameras, it is easy to use up the bytes quickly. The pictures we upload take up to one megabyte each. When we upload one hundred pictures after that last party, we have another one hundred megabytes filled.
This is like my desk. The daily snail mail seems to accumulate at an every increasing pace. Before I realize it, my desk is loaded and I have to push paper around to find things. My desk needs defragging as much as my hard drive! The desk is only so big and my hard drive has limits, too. It would be great to have an unlimited amount of hard disk space so whatever we wanted to save would fit.
Everything has a limit. We can only fit so much on our computer. Our car’s trunk can only fit so much stuff. a credit cards has a limit, too. When reached, we cannot use it anymore and may even be embarrassed at a checkout counter when we have to come up with the cash.
God has no limit. His resources are unlimited. Whatever we need, He can supply and all we have to do is ask. If our request lines up with His will, He promises to supply it. He does not send it by UPS or FedEx. They are quick to deliver the items we purchase over the Internet. God does not have to fulfill our request long distance. He gave each believer the Holy Spirit; Christ within. The Holy Spirit lives in us and gives us the inner strength to accomplish anything He has for us to do.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
