His Truth in Life  (7)

Like Him

One cannot understand what it means to be conformed to the image of Christ without knowing the gospels well because that is where we are told so much about Him. He showed the fruits of the Spirit, patience, kindness, goodness, when He dealt with anyone who came to Him with hope and faith He could help. He said He came to serve (Matt. 20:28, Mk. 10:45). We also see anger and honest confrontation.  When talking to the Pharisees, He called a spade a spade and did not soft pedal his condemnation. He was sad and wept (Jn. 11:34-35). He was always honest, always kept His word.  And humble.  He is God and came to earth as a helpless baby, to live and die to pay for our shortcomings. The only path to peace and joy is to become like Him, to trust and obey the instructions He has given us in the Bible.  We must read, study, learn and take to heart what is in the Bible. 

The Sun (Son) Might Come (out) Tomorrow

Don't believe all you are told, see or read.  Thursday night news predicted rain all day Friday. Paper read Friday 80% chance of rain. We looked and the radar showed clouds all around late Thursday night and it looked like we were going to have a fourth or fifth day in a row of rain.  Yet, we had a beautiful, sunny day on Friday.  Of course every day I sang, "The sun will come out tomorrow, bet your bottom dollar there will be sun."  I sang it but didn't believe it because I saw the radar and read and heard all the predictions and they were all true for Monday-Thursday.  But Friday was wonderful.  

Friday evening on our walk, we passed a woman who was frowning.  I said to her, "We had such beautiful weather today, after all those days of rain."  She answered, "It is going to rain again." I said, "But today was beautiful."  She grudgingly replied that it was.  Don't be like her, so focussed on potential bad while surrounded with so much good, beauty, love, etc. And when the Lord gives you lemons, make lemonade.  We did. One day of the rain, we went to a movie and another I drove down to spend time with our daughter Nina and her baby, Emily. Thursday afternoon with all the rain, I sat down and for the first time in ages and played the piano. Every cloud does have a silver lining.  Find it.  Life is much nicer when you do.

The so called news programs, whether liberal or conservative are opinion shows. The newspapers and news on the internet are the same.  When you do learn what is going on in the world, North Korea, Syria, Iran, and here (I won't go into that), it is so easy to get discouraged, just as all of us were after 3-4 days of rain. Yet, the SON might come  tomorrow.  He will return any day.  We know that because the only source of truth is the BIble and Jesus tells us over an over He will return and we are to be ready. (Matt. 24:36-44, 25:1-13, Luke:35-40).  We are in a time of nasty weather and nasty news.  Are you ready for the Son?

The Gift of Music

The rain is good, but day after day of grey clouds and drizzle do get to me.  Does it get to you too? I guess there's some psychological disorder for people who get down on cloudy days.  We may as well be neurotic, everyone else seems to be.  I fight back.  Having to stay indoors, I fill the house with music, usually music I can sing to.  I am blessed that Neil really likes to hear me sing.  I bring the sunshine in, even when it's gray and yucky out.  As the song in "Annie" goes, "Just thinking about tomorrow clears away the cobwebs and the sorrow. There'll be sun." And the kid's song, "Oh, let the sunshine in.  Face it with a grin.  Open up your heart and let the sunshine in."  How thankful I am for the gift of music!  Especially music like in yesterday's service.  We sang a song that goes, "He knows my name. He knows my every thought.  He sees my every tear and hears me when I call."  Again I say, how thankful I am for the gift of music and the ability to remember it.

Women's Rights

We westerners, are appalled at the disrespect of females in Islamic countries. Like it or not, western civilization is built on Biblical principles, Old and New Testaments.  It is no surprise to me the the Arab world does not seem to have a concept of women's rights.  They do not know our Bible or God.  He is the author of women's rights. 

Do we even appreciate the radical direction God led us in Numbers 27:1-11?  In these verses, God establish women's right to own land. The Hebrews are nearing the promised land.  The land was the inheritance promised to Jacob's sons. The land that was promised was to have gone to the original men who left Egypt representing the 12 tribes.  That land would be given to their sons.  The daughters of a man who had not taken part in the rebellion had no brother came to Moses.  All thinking at that time, and in the Arab world today, said that women could not inherit or own land.  Moses asked the Lord.  He said the daughters were right that if they could not inherit the land, their father's branch would not be represented. God told Moses that if a man dies without a son, his daughters would inherit the land. The Lord follows with what to do if the man had no children at all.  Women owning property.  We take that for granted here.  It is literally a God given right. 

In the New Testament, Jesus repeatedly listens to and praises females.  When He rose from the tomb, He first appeared to Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James.  Twice Jesus defended the sanctity of marriage.  In His sermon on the mount, (Matt. 53-32) He said that only for proof of sexual infidelity could a man divorce his wife. When questioned by the pharisees about a man's right to divorce his wife, he quoted Genesis 2:24. (Matt. 19-34). 

The disrespect of women is not limited to Islamic countries either.  Consider Asia.  When we lived in Tucson, through an organization, International Friends", we brought 2 Chinese families into our homes and hearts.  We were not allow to prosthelytize, but were allow to answer questions.  We started with our first student in December.  In May we were in our pool one day and he asked Neil, "In my country is is expected that if a wife displeases her husband, he will beat her.  I cannot imagine you ever striking Nancy.  Why not?"  Neil answered with the same quote from Genesis 2:24 the Jesus quoted.

Since there is a common disrespect of women in non Judeo-Christian countries, one must wonder to what the atheists attribute this phenomenon.  How thankful I am to be here in a country founded on Biblical principles and to believe the Bible.