I believe it was George Bernard Shaw who opined, "I learned long ago never to wrestle with a pig. You get dirty, and besides, the pig likes it."
That is sound advice! And since our "flesh" is a real pig (e.g., Eph. 4:19), we need to remember Ephesians 6:12 and walk in Galatians 2:20.
I know, that sort of sounds like "code words"--unless you meditate on those verses a bit!
Maranatha!
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
A Note from China
We are in PA enjoying time with the Leaches. The fall colors have been beautiful and today we are actually going to site see a bit. Don't get many days off, so hope to make the most of it. Allen has a BIG collection of old movies, so we have been laughing to Laurel and Hardy!
I got a note from our friend in China this morning that I thought was most insightful--and timely. Pray for the saints in that distant land and take the following to heart:
I got a note from our friend in China this morning that I thought was most insightful--and timely. Pray for the saints in that distant land and take the following to heart:
"Last night I went to a 'revival' meeting. We were out walking and stumbled
upon an outdoor meeting where there was a three hundred voice
choir - almost every hand raised in praise. The loud speaker system was
blaring away and tears were in almost every eye. It looked like one of the religious
TV programs from the USA.
"Then my eye caught the nearly seventy five young
"Then my eye caught the nearly seventy five young
Buddhists priests at the back. Momentarily I was shocked. It seems that the
emotional deceit of the Devil's plan has worked so well in the West in the
'personal revelations' people receive from God that he has duplicated the "show business"
aspect of it here in the far east. Wow! what a shocker! I could have sworn it was
a 'christian' charismatic meeting."
Maranatha!
Maranatha!
Sunday, October 11, 2009
On the Road Again
We finished the conference in Concord, NC this morning. Brother Perry Lemmons and the saints of Royal Grace Bible Church did a great job of hosting this time in the Word. It was good to meet a number of folks who are new to right division and see their joy at the clarity it brings to the Scriptures.
This afternoon Cynthia and I traveled to Winston-Salem to visit my niece--my only brother's middle daughter, Nichole. She is a grad from Salem College and has decided to make this beautiful and genuinely southern city her home. After Nic gave us a tour of the historic college campus area, we had supper together and a good time catching up on life. She is on FaceBook and had added me as a friend by the time I got online this evening. She has 100 more friends than I do, so she thinks she's out doing me!
We are spending the night somewhere in Virginia and will be going on to the Leaches in PA tomorrow. Frankly, this is far too beautiful an area to travel through in the dark. I want Cynthia to see it again as it has been a long time since we traveled up I-81 together (last time was in the mid-80's!).
I've had several good reports from home so know that they had an outstanding day at Shorewood. My heart is always there and folks know it, so they send me notes on what's going on. It is wonderful to have such a "home" to return to. There's no place like home, even when your away doing important and valuable things. Having "hearts knit together" in "the household of faith" is a blessing beyond my ability to describe--so I just enjoy it!
Maranatha!
This afternoon Cynthia and I traveled to Winston-Salem to visit my niece--my only brother's middle daughter, Nichole. She is a grad from Salem College and has decided to make this beautiful and genuinely southern city her home. After Nic gave us a tour of the historic college campus area, we had supper together and a good time catching up on life. She is on FaceBook and had added me as a friend by the time I got online this evening. She has 100 more friends than I do, so she thinks she's out doing me!
We are spending the night somewhere in Virginia and will be going on to the Leaches in PA tomorrow. Frankly, this is far too beautiful an area to travel through in the dark. I want Cynthia to see it again as it has been a long time since we traveled up I-81 together (last time was in the mid-80's!).
I've had several good reports from home so know that they had an outstanding day at Shorewood. My heart is always there and folks know it, so they send me notes on what's going on. It is wonderful to have such a "home" to return to. There's no place like home, even when your away doing important and valuable things. Having "hearts knit together" in "the household of faith" is a blessing beyond my ability to describe--so I just enjoy it!
Maranatha!
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Just So
Just so you know that we haven't gone out of business, I thought I should get an update posted. Its been awhile! Actually the "10 Second Kiss" post got such a large response--both in my email box and on FaceBook but for some reason not on the comments here--that I just left it as the top article for a bit longer than usual. Ted suggested we should market the idea--something to consider if he ever masters the technique!
Anyway, I have been busy. Traveled to southern Illinois, Detroit twice, Grand Rapids, Oregon, Washington and Cynthia and I will be leaving for Concord, NC tomorrow and then on the Hamlin, PA next week. Seems like I'm missing some place, but my mind isn't working great at the moment. I'm in the Detroit airport hoping for an on-time departure (something I haven't had the past two months).
Shorewood is into its regular school-year-routine now, so things are really busy there. We have broken into the 100+ hookups for the live Internet broadcasts of our services. Another milestone! Alex is teaching an eight week Friday night evangelistic seminar on "Where Is God?" and we've had really great response from folks outside our normal group. Exciting (and humbling)to see people coming to faith in Christ and growing in grace. We also started a new Sunday morning class for the post-high-school-but-under-30 group. We're calling Cuppa G.r.a.c.e. (i.e., "Grace Rightly Applied Changes Everything"--an anachronism someone came up with that we all like!). I'm actually teaching the class the first three months.
I am blown away with all the folks I'm meeting who are watching Forgotten Truths! The enthusiastic interest for the message of grace is a joy to behold. In Oregon, a 94 year old husband and his 91 year old wife had his 84 year old sister drive them some 9 hours to attend the conference! They simply "had to be there," and are fruit from FT. We are also beginning to enroll a significant number of students in GSB from the FT audience. At first I wondered if they really understood what they were "getting into," but have discovered they not only do they understand they are fast becoming some of our most determined students!
As we watch the culture about us disintegrating before our eyes, it is both comforting and challenging to have the solid rock of God's preserved Word to rest our confidence on, knowing that Psalm 138:2 is still true. The next two decades will be the most important decades of our lives--no matter what your age is at the moment. The Winter season for America is here; we need to be busy about the work of the ministry during this fertile time for spiritual impact. This is not season to be weary in well doing! Lets get on with the program!
Maranatha!
Anyway, I have been busy. Traveled to southern Illinois, Detroit twice, Grand Rapids, Oregon, Washington and Cynthia and I will be leaving for Concord, NC tomorrow and then on the Hamlin, PA next week. Seems like I'm missing some place, but my mind isn't working great at the moment. I'm in the Detroit airport hoping for an on-time departure (something I haven't had the past two months).
Shorewood is into its regular school-year-routine now, so things are really busy there. We have broken into the 100+ hookups for the live Internet broadcasts of our services. Another milestone! Alex is teaching an eight week Friday night evangelistic seminar on "Where Is God?" and we've had really great response from folks outside our normal group. Exciting (and humbling)to see people coming to faith in Christ and growing in grace. We also started a new Sunday morning class for the post-high-school-but-under-30 group. We're calling Cuppa G.r.a.c.e. (i.e., "Grace Rightly Applied Changes Everything"--an anachronism someone came up with that we all like!). I'm actually teaching the class the first three months.
I am blown away with all the folks I'm meeting who are watching Forgotten Truths! The enthusiastic interest for the message of grace is a joy to behold. In Oregon, a 94 year old husband and his 91 year old wife had his 84 year old sister drive them some 9 hours to attend the conference! They simply "had to be there," and are fruit from FT. We are also beginning to enroll a significant number of students in GSB from the FT audience. At first I wondered if they really understood what they were "getting into," but have discovered they not only do they understand they are fast becoming some of our most determined students!
As we watch the culture about us disintegrating before our eyes, it is both comforting and challenging to have the solid rock of God's preserved Word to rest our confidence on, knowing that Psalm 138:2 is still true. The next two decades will be the most important decades of our lives--no matter what your age is at the moment. The Winter season for America is here; we need to be busy about the work of the ministry during this fertile time for spiritual impact. This is not season to be weary in well doing! Lets get on with the program!
Maranatha!
Monday, August 17, 2009
The 10 Second Kiss
I was watching Oprah—well, not really. Her program comes on after the evening news and I had simply let the TV continue to run. Cynthia was asleep on the couch while I worked on my lap top. Oprah was running in the background. At one point it caught my attention, as some woman something-or-other was speaking about the need for husbands and wives to “connect” (or some-such-mush). Her suggestion? A ten-second-kiss. Not a peck; but a real, moment engulfing kiss. It got me to thinking.
Over four decades of married life Cynthia and I have had a habit of not allowing one of us to leave home without a kiss goodbye. We started the tradition, actually, before we married—but that’s another story.
But those who have been married for a while know it is easy to get into the “little peck” mode. It isn’t that we don’t love each other; we just have gotten used to the ritual and its sort of like a little-peck-will-do-ya effort. So…
I decided to take the lady’s advice. The next day I introduced my wife to our daily 10 Second Kiss ritual. I can say (gratefully) that it has been well received. After the first couple of times I didn’t have to count in my head any more to be sure we met our time requirement. And it is amazing how those extra seconds can focus you on the one who is in reality the other-half-of-you.
Since Paul exhorts husbands to “love your wives,” I decided I would be the one to take the initiative. I vary the timing so as not to allow this special moment to become encrusted with ritual. My only rule of thumb is that it is to take place after we are up and going in the morning and before we begin to retire in the evening. This helps to make it a memory that lasts through the day! I’m not going to beat myself up if I miss a day—neither will Cynthia, since I didn’t tell her I planned this as a daily thing (and since she does't read my blog or do facebook she won’t know about this unless some of you spill the beans). I’ll just be looking for a moment each day to make “special.”
Anyway, its something I’ll be recommending to married couples. In fact, I’ll be doing a wedding this weekend and plan to give the new husband some instructions along these lines while we await the ceremony. Of course, newlyweds don’t need too much encouragement in this area, but there’s really not that much to talk about in the “green room” just before the ceremony and maybe he’ll remember it in the years ahead. He’s a really neat, smart guy—marrying a beautiful, talented gal.
Try it; you’ll like it! By the way, Oprah’s response to the suggestion was something like, “Forget 10 seconds, how about the 27 second one!” Not a bad idea either!
Maranatha!
Over four decades of married life Cynthia and I have had a habit of not allowing one of us to leave home without a kiss goodbye. We started the tradition, actually, before we married—but that’s another story.
But those who have been married for a while know it is easy to get into the “little peck” mode. It isn’t that we don’t love each other; we just have gotten used to the ritual and its sort of like a little-peck-will-do-ya effort. So…
I decided to take the lady’s advice. The next day I introduced my wife to our daily 10 Second Kiss ritual. I can say (gratefully) that it has been well received. After the first couple of times I didn’t have to count in my head any more to be sure we met our time requirement. And it is amazing how those extra seconds can focus you on the one who is in reality the other-half-of-you.
Since Paul exhorts husbands to “love your wives,” I decided I would be the one to take the initiative. I vary the timing so as not to allow this special moment to become encrusted with ritual. My only rule of thumb is that it is to take place after we are up and going in the morning and before we begin to retire in the evening. This helps to make it a memory that lasts through the day! I’m not going to beat myself up if I miss a day—neither will Cynthia, since I didn’t tell her I planned this as a daily thing (and since she does't read my blog or do facebook she won’t know about this unless some of you spill the beans). I’ll just be looking for a moment each day to make “special.”
Anyway, its something I’ll be recommending to married couples. In fact, I’ll be doing a wedding this weekend and plan to give the new husband some instructions along these lines while we await the ceremony. Of course, newlyweds don’t need too much encouragement in this area, but there’s really not that much to talk about in the “green room” just before the ceremony and maybe he’ll remember it in the years ahead. He’s a really neat, smart guy—marrying a beautiful, talented gal.
Try it; you’ll like it! By the way, Oprah’s response to the suggestion was something like, “Forget 10 seconds, how about the 27 second one!” Not a bad idea either!
Maranatha!
Monday, August 10, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Frankenstein #3
On the trip back to Chicago I read Dean Koontz's final installment in his Frankenstein trilogy. This mesmerizing rework of one of the classic stories of all time offers an unsettling view of the current state of "scientism," the politicizing of science which has changed its primary goal from knowledge to power.
I was struck by his inclusion, just before the title page, of the following quote from C. S. Lewis' The Abolition of Man. Struck, first by the fact Koontz's is reading Lewis on this issue, but more so by the insight of the quote itself:
"I am very doubtful whether history shows us one example of a man who, having stepped outside traditional morality and attained power, has used that power benevolently."
Maranatha!
I was struck by his inclusion, just before the title page, of the following quote from C. S. Lewis' The Abolition of Man. Struck, first by the fact Koontz's is reading Lewis on this issue, but more so by the insight of the quote itself:
"I am very doubtful whether history shows us one example of a man who, having stepped outside traditional morality and attained power, has used that power benevolently."
Maranatha!
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