Today is Halloween. When I was a child it was one of my absolutely most favorite days. I loved dressing up. Loved getting to go door-to-door to collect the generously given treats. Loved bobbing for apples, pulling taffy, eating caramels plain as well as on popcorn or apples. I loved the fun of it. The joy of it. All of it.
That feeling continued with our kids. It was pure fun - - until it suddenly wasn't. I don't remember the exact year - but someone put pieces of razor blades in the candies children collected in the neighboring town - and suddenly everything became suspect. The risk of having something injected through the wrappers also became an issue. The need for vigilant caution became apparent. We cautiously went only to houses of people we knew well, and even then, we inspected each piece of candy to be certain it hadn't been tampered with.
My first response to the new dangers was to offer a safe alternative: a carnival at church that kids could come to and have fun in a safe environment. A cake walk, musical chairs, walking a 'plank', (a narrow board suspended about 6 inches off the ground), along with several other games, including guessing games. Lots of treats, even dry ice in the punch for the effect. It was a safe alternative.
We billed it as an All Saint's Eve party and asked kids to dress up as their favorite Bible character. It was a ton of fun - and a great way to get kids from the community into the church for a peek: to find out we could have a lot of fun with appropriate balance. And, it felt a bit like we were taking the holiday back. After all, my limited understanding was that All Hallow's Eve, the night before All Saint's Day, was a night that they put lights in pumpkins to scare off evil spirits - - a little superstitious, certainly, but I just didn't analyze it or try to gather further information on the night's history.
Then came the death of Halloween for me: the ritual killing of a kidnapped horse in a nearby town by Satan-worshippers. That was soon followed by hearing of people who actually adopted children to use them for their occult worship practices. I was done. What had once been 'fun' was destroyed by the awareness that it was a night of unparalleled evil among those who worship the devil - and, right or wrong, I didn't want to be even remotely associated with it any longer.
In our former town, we'd get 100 trick-or-treaters in a night. Now, out in the woods, we don't get anyone but the grandkids. I didn't even buy candy this year, so it is easy to bow out.
Still, kids love to dress up and have fun sometime. So - - with that in mind, I still favor the idea of the safe church party, with a twist on the focus. I like the idea of celebrating All Saint's Eve!
The reminder brings several very special people to mind: people who deserve to be on my 'cloud of witnesses' list.
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In quite a different vein, something I read in Ezekiel 9 a couple of days ago keeps coming back to me. We know that during the tribulation, it is prophesied that people will have to take the number of the mark of the beast to be able to buy or sell. So - with that in mind, the words in Ezekiel 9 leap out at me - that prior to the destruction of Israel, God instructed 'the man clothed in linen' to go through the City of Jerusalem "and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it."
What strikes me about that is the reality that Satan has a substitute for everything God does. God used His mark to protect. Satan's mark (of the beast) will be alleged to protect - - but it will become people's seal of eternal death, doom and destruction.
What a contrast!
Monday, October 31, 2011
Sunday, October 30, 2011
GOD'S MOST RECENT MESSAGE TO ME
I love that God interacts with his created. With me. His specific messages of direction to me are generally brief and to the point. This past week was no exception. I have been working on the musical He gave me both intentionally and sporadically... I know that sounds like an oxymoron - - it consumes my thoughts, but progress and the fine-tuning of editing is slow. I was really discouraged about that this past week, and after several days of voicing that to God, He spoke. His words, "The process is part of the purpose."
Wow! Part of my agony in its not being completed was my vision that God wouldn't be able to use it until it was done - but that's not the whole story, according to Him. There is a purpose in the process. I can't see what it might be - but He knows. What a weight off my shoulders. Yes, I need to be intentional. Yes, I need to keep at it. But - it is not just a destination; it is a journey - and He has an intention for something good to come out of the process. I'm so very grateful for that assurance!
I'll let you know when it's available online! Until then - I'm excited to watch for what God has in mind for the process.
Wow! Part of my agony in its not being completed was my vision that God wouldn't be able to use it until it was done - but that's not the whole story, according to Him. There is a purpose in the process. I can't see what it might be - but He knows. What a weight off my shoulders. Yes, I need to be intentional. Yes, I need to keep at it. But - it is not just a destination; it is a journey - and He has an intention for something good to come out of the process. I'm so very grateful for that assurance!
I'll let you know when it's available online! Until then - I'm excited to watch for what God has in mind for the process.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
PROPHECY OF GOD'S JUDGMENT AGAINST JERUSALEM
In Ezekiel 5 God (speaking through the pen of Ezekiel) spells out in no uncertain terms what He is going to do to Jerusalem for her collective rebellion, wickedness and disobedience.
Before He pronounces the parameters of His judgment, God declares, "This is Jerusalem. I have set her in the center of the nations, with countries all around her." Living on this side of the fulfilled prophecy, we need to pay attention to that. Jerusalem is the center of the world. Then and now. As I read the words of God's vengeance against His holy city, I keep repeating, "God chastens those He loves."
Beginning with verse 7 God declares His judgment, but first, as any good parent should do when they punish their child, He explains why He will do what He is going to do. Then He outlines the consequences. The judgments He promised were severe. Then He told them that those who survive His horrible judgments would be scattered to the winds, and that He would withdraw His favor from them. A third would die from famine and pestilence; a third would fall to the sword; a third would be scattered to the winds, with the sword unsheathed after them. In addition, the prophecy against them included that God would make them a desolation and an object of reproach among the nations all around them and in the sight of all who pass by....
That prophecy's fulfillment began with the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B C. Ezekiel penned this chapter in c. 593 B C, so God revealed what He was going to do to Jerusalem +-seven years before it happened.
It is a clear reminder of God's sovereignty - that He is God and I am not. I cannot second-guess His decisions, but I can observe.... And, in paying attention one of the most salient points is that what He promises will come to pass....
As a little side note, I'd like to point out that God is not jealous of, He is jealous for. Jealous for our complete commitment and obedience. What God cares about most of all is our salvation, and He will go to any lengths to achieve that. His goal for us is that we be conformed to the image of His Son. That process requires refining.
God's refining took drastic measures - but that was His goal for His chosen people, Israel (Jews), as well. However, in reading this account, I get it why some Jewish people lament, "I wish He didn't love us so much!" The reality is, that retort comes from a view of self as sovereign. We aren't - but it sure takes us a lifetime to learn that.
I pray I will accept God's discipline with joy. Joy that He loves me and has adopted me as His child.
I love what Pastor Peter says, "God loves you just the way you are, but He loves you too much to leave you that way." There are days that I groan against being a work in progress. I would love to be perfect. And though I know that isn't going to happen this side of eternity, I'm on the journey!
Before He pronounces the parameters of His judgment, God declares, "This is Jerusalem. I have set her in the center of the nations, with countries all around her." Living on this side of the fulfilled prophecy, we need to pay attention to that. Jerusalem is the center of the world. Then and now. As I read the words of God's vengeance against His holy city, I keep repeating, "God chastens those He loves."
Beginning with verse 7 God declares His judgment, but first, as any good parent should do when they punish their child, He explains why He will do what He is going to do. Then He outlines the consequences. The judgments He promised were severe. Then He told them that those who survive His horrible judgments would be scattered to the winds, and that He would withdraw His favor from them. A third would die from famine and pestilence; a third would fall to the sword; a third would be scattered to the winds, with the sword unsheathed after them. In addition, the prophecy against them included that God would make them a desolation and an object of reproach among the nations all around them and in the sight of all who pass by....
That prophecy's fulfillment began with the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B C. Ezekiel penned this chapter in c. 593 B C, so God revealed what He was going to do to Jerusalem +-seven years before it happened.
It is a clear reminder of God's sovereignty - that He is God and I am not. I cannot second-guess His decisions, but I can observe.... And, in paying attention one of the most salient points is that what He promises will come to pass....
As a little side note, I'd like to point out that God is not jealous of, He is jealous for. Jealous for our complete commitment and obedience. What God cares about most of all is our salvation, and He will go to any lengths to achieve that. His goal for us is that we be conformed to the image of His Son. That process requires refining.
God's refining took drastic measures - but that was His goal for His chosen people, Israel (Jews), as well. However, in reading this account, I get it why some Jewish people lament, "I wish He didn't love us so much!" The reality is, that retort comes from a view of self as sovereign. We aren't - but it sure takes us a lifetime to learn that.
I pray I will accept God's discipline with joy. Joy that He loves me and has adopted me as His child.
I love what Pastor Peter says, "God loves you just the way you are, but He loves you too much to leave you that way." There are days that I groan against being a work in progress. I would love to be perfect. And though I know that isn't going to happen this side of eternity, I'm on the journey!
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
PROPHECY OF GOD'S JUDGMENT AGAINST ISRAEL
The preface to Ezekiel in my ESV says that Ezekiel was about 30 years old when he began receiving and writing down his visions, and that the visions continued over a time span of 20 years, until he was about 50 years old.
The timeline offered states that he was taken into captivity in Babylon when he was about 25 years old, and that at the age of 30, his first writings would have been around 593 B C. The ESV study notes even go so far as to suggest July as the month he began writing that year. Frankly, I'm impressed by the information-gathering that permits that keen of historical timing. One of the reasons it is possible is that Ezekiel references dates of what is happening in the secular world, which allows corroboration of a reasonably accurate timeline. Still, impressive!
Chapters 1 - 25 were written before the fall of Jerusalem in 586 B C, so they prophesy what was still to come at the time written. In chapter 4 of Ezekiel, God directs Ezekiel to bear the punishment of the house of Israel, with very specific instructions pertaining to his diet and sleeping position; and following that, to bear the punishment for Judah.
Chapter 4 goes on to lay out what some of the punishment of Jerusalem will entail. All spoken before it happened.
That is the key thing that piques my interest. I know Ezekiel will later cover prophecies relevant to these very last of the last days before Jesus returns. I'm eager to get to those!
The timeline offered states that he was taken into captivity in Babylon when he was about 25 years old, and that at the age of 30, his first writings would have been around 593 B C. The ESV study notes even go so far as to suggest July as the month he began writing that year. Frankly, I'm impressed by the information-gathering that permits that keen of historical timing. One of the reasons it is possible is that Ezekiel references dates of what is happening in the secular world, which allows corroboration of a reasonably accurate timeline. Still, impressive!
Chapters 1 - 25 were written before the fall of Jerusalem in 586 B C, so they prophesy what was still to come at the time written. In chapter 4 of Ezekiel, God directs Ezekiel to bear the punishment of the house of Israel, with very specific instructions pertaining to his diet and sleeping position; and following that, to bear the punishment for Judah.
Chapter 4 goes on to lay out what some of the punishment of Jerusalem will entail. All spoken before it happened.
That is the key thing that piques my interest. I know Ezekiel will later cover prophecies relevant to these very last of the last days before Jesus returns. I'm eager to get to those!
WHEN GOD SPEAKS - Ezekiel 1 - 3
One of the first things to capture my attention in reading chapters 1 - 3 of Ezekiel yesterday was that each time God's glory was present, Ezekiel fell on his face, and in each instance it was the Spirit of God that lifted him up.
The second thing that leaped out at me was God's clear directive was: when God told Ezekiel what to speak, he was to speak it whether people heard it or not. Heard as in listened. It is a directive that segues directly to us as His followers today. We must speak the Truth - from a heart filled with love and the pure intention of turning people's hearts toward God - but even if they don't hear, when God nudges us to speak, we must speak. The clear message in Ezekiel is that God will also provide the words to say.
Lord, make me quick to obey!
The second thing that leaped out at me was God's clear directive was: when God told Ezekiel what to speak, he was to speak it whether people heard it or not. Heard as in listened. It is a directive that segues directly to us as His followers today. We must speak the Truth - from a heart filled with love and the pure intention of turning people's hearts toward God - but even if they don't hear, when God nudges us to speak, we must speak. The clear message in Ezekiel is that God will also provide the words to say.
Lord, make me quick to obey!
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
THE 10 PLAGUES OF EXODUS
I had the joy of being the storyteller for Children's Worship on Sunday. The assigned story was the first 9 plagues God sent to get Pharoah to 'let His people go.' I love telling stories to kids - and know that object lessons make it stick. I used red food coloring to dye a bottle of water red to talk about how all of the water in all of the rivers, ponds, lakes, streams - even in their houses turned to blood. One of the kids asked me if it was real blood.
I had a wooden frog to represent the next plague - frogs in their cereal bowls, frogs crawling up their legs - frogs everywhere. I caught a real fly and took it in a little jar, and had a picture of a fly to show as well for the plague of flies. Toy farm animals for the livestock plague. A container of ping pong balls for the hail plague. Lights out and a flashlight for the 3-day plague of darkness. Pictures of the other bugs and a picture of a person infected with boils. Visual aids.
I realized while preparing the lesson that God was very specific in the plagues He chose. They were designed to prove He alone was the One true God. His plagues defied all of their worshiped deities, and they had one for everything, from river worship of The Nile, to worship of the sun and moon. He proved clearly that none of their alleged gods could stand up against his Almighty Power.
His object lessons were a good message for the Hebrew children as well. They had been in slavery for 400 years. They had lost their voice and lost their faith. Then God moved! In His time, in His way, with unlikely methods.
Sunday morning I cued the kids to respond, "What were you thinking, Pharoah?" every time Pharaoh said 'no.' They really got into it. It was truly fun - and in the fun, they had the opportunity to learn an awesome Bible story about our miracle-working God who cared about his people and brought them out of the land of Egypt.
I'm so glad the God we worship is the One true God. He has proved Himself over and over, and the Bible records what He has done - and what He will do.
In my personal reading, I concluded Paul's writings, and have started Ezekiel. What a switch to go from books that provided clear direction of how we are to live out our faith to a book that I will understand little of! But, I look forward to the journey. Reading the 1st 3 chapters of Ezekiel this morning just made me realize how grateful I am that everything that was and is and is to come is in His hands. I'm praying for snippets of insight....
I had a wooden frog to represent the next plague - frogs in their cereal bowls, frogs crawling up their legs - frogs everywhere. I caught a real fly and took it in a little jar, and had a picture of a fly to show as well for the plague of flies. Toy farm animals for the livestock plague. A container of ping pong balls for the hail plague. Lights out and a flashlight for the 3-day plague of darkness. Pictures of the other bugs and a picture of a person infected with boils. Visual aids.
I realized while preparing the lesson that God was very specific in the plagues He chose. They were designed to prove He alone was the One true God. His plagues defied all of their worshiped deities, and they had one for everything, from river worship of The Nile, to worship of the sun and moon. He proved clearly that none of their alleged gods could stand up against his Almighty Power.
His object lessons were a good message for the Hebrew children as well. They had been in slavery for 400 years. They had lost their voice and lost their faith. Then God moved! In His time, in His way, with unlikely methods.
Sunday morning I cued the kids to respond, "What were you thinking, Pharoah?" every time Pharaoh said 'no.' They really got into it. It was truly fun - and in the fun, they had the opportunity to learn an awesome Bible story about our miracle-working God who cared about his people and brought them out of the land of Egypt.
I'm so glad the God we worship is the One true God. He has proved Himself over and over, and the Bible records what He has done - and what He will do.
In my personal reading, I concluded Paul's writings, and have started Ezekiel. What a switch to go from books that provided clear direction of how we are to live out our faith to a book that I will understand little of! But, I look forward to the journey. Reading the 1st 3 chapters of Ezekiel this morning just made me realize how grateful I am that everything that was and is and is to come is in His hands. I'm praying for snippets of insight....
Monday, October 24, 2011
2 TIMOTHY CHAPTER 4
Paul's final words exhort Timothy - and by extension, us - to be faithful to the Truth of the Word of God. In 2 Timothy 4:3, Paul warns: "For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths."
Although this reality has punctuated history on many occasions, false teaching today is pervasively perilous. Society shrinks away from calling sin, sin and evil, evil. Paul already reminded Timothy in 1 Timothy 4 that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons. In fact the Bible is full of written warnings to keep us on the path of Truth. We can't embrace Truth without being immersed in God's Word.
Although this reality has punctuated history on many occasions, false teaching today is pervasively perilous. Society shrinks away from calling sin, sin and evil, evil. Paul already reminded Timothy in 1 Timothy 4 that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons. In fact the Bible is full of written warnings to keep us on the path of Truth. We can't embrace Truth without being immersed in God's Word.
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