WORTH CONSIDERING: In recent days I have been considering how fortunate I am to have experienced God’s forgiveness through faith in Christ in the light of the Ten Commandments. God has been merciful to me, deserving eternal condemnation. So it is with all the redeemed. The Ten Commandments condemns us all. When I evaluate each of the commandments I am guilty of breaking them all in the light of Christ’s definition of the their meaning. Though I have never murdered anyone, through anger or hatred I am guilty of murder in my heart. So, it goes down through the list.
When I consider my unworthiness in the light of God’s justice I am indeed fortunate and blessed to have God’s forgiveness, wiping the slate clean through Christ’s cleansing blood. Thus giving me the blessing of a cleansed life along with the promise of one day entering His Heavenly Kingdom. There was a time when I considered myself a pretty nice person, not understanding God’s holiness. Now I understand that I really wasn’t a nice person. I have met and talked with so many people about their need of God’s forgiveness only to have them tell me how they think they are okay and expecting to make it into Heaven when they die. They have never grasped God’s evaluation of sin as defined in the Ten Commandments and by Christ’s definition. They have never viewed them, based upon their heart condition. As a true believer, rejoice in what you have been forgiven of and enjoy the peace that God alone can give. God’s grace, unmerited favor, is ours through faith in Christ. Rejoice!
THE MILO EVENT: when we lived in Ogallala, Nebraska Christmas was approaching and we were very short on funds for Christmas gifts. Kathy was making centerpieces to give to people. We drove outside town to try and find some vegetation that she could use in making the centerpieces. Of course the harvest of Milo was long over but they often miss a few straggling stocks along the edge of the field. I pulled off the edge of the road and proceeded to get a few stalks of Milo for her to put in her centerpieces. When I turned around there was a car stopped behind ours writing down our license plate. I went to the car behind us to see what was going on. The lady was very harsh and informed me that this was her farm field and told me I had no business being on it. It was an unpleasant experience as I tried to explain what I was doing. I also took down her license number and then looked up her address. We decided to have Kathy make up a centerpiece for the lady, made of Styrofoam, little figures and including a sprig of the Milo I had gotten from the field. I then delivered it to her home and handed it to her when she answered the door and quickly left. The next day one of our church men worked at the same place this lady worked and he had told us how embarrassed she was and telling how badly she had felt in being so harsh with me. It was an interesting experience in giving to someone who had been so harsh with me over nothing, collecting a few stalks of Milo after harvest time. Much like the Bible told farmers to leave a little grain to be gleaned by the poor and needy.
THE STIMULUS DEAL: The stimulus for nearly $800 trillion dollars is just about a done deal for President Obama to sign. This is the largest ever governmental give away in the history of our nation and all at the tax payers expense that our grandchildren will be paying off years down the road. From what I have heard and understood there is very little in the package that will do much to create jobs. It is full of goodies that politicians are giving away to benefit their own districts. Will it work, help or hurt, that is the big question. All Republicans, with the exception of three, have refused to sign the bill since they don’t feel of good conscience to put their name on it. Will they be hurt or eventually justified in their rejection? Time will tell. Hopefully it won’t turn out to be a goof up like the first half of the TARP give away that had no accountability attached to it.
CRIME & THE ECONOMY: The bad economy is causing changes in our law enforcement and fire departments. Police and fireman are being laid off, causing a real threat to community safety. Recently Columbus laid off twenty-six police recruits two days before graduation because the city couldn’t afford their salaries. National news is now reporting the increase of assorted crimes in a number of states and large cities. The questions that come to my mind relates to people who are now out of work. Are some of them resorting to crime to try and care for the needs of their families? Or, are criminals now becoming more active because they know the police are short handed and therefore they are less likely to get caught. I was too young during the Great Depression to think about these matters but I wonder if criminal activities increased then as they are starting to do now.
SUPPORT CONCERNS: I have been informed this week of a church dropping my support after many years standing with us. Hopefully the economy isn’t going to create financial problems now for missionaries. Please pray for us, and others that may have similar concerns relating to their support.
No comments:
Post a Comment