me!

Houdini Christians

Bible text: “The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet” (James 4:10)

Thought: “Any effort that has self-glorification as its final endpoint is bound to end in disaster.” - Anonymous

Harry Houdini was perhaps the greatest escape artist this world has ever known. His name still lives on the lips of world renowned escape artists, and his enigmatic persona is still influential to professional magicians everywhere.

Houdini perfected the skill of physical escape from seemingly impossible devices and situations; all while audiences looked on with breathless anticipation. He dazzled the masses with escapes designed to push the boundaries of physical human ability.

Whether he was being placed upside down in a vat of water, or he was hoisted by his feet with a crane while bound in a straight jacket, Houdini never failed to satisfy. One of his escapes even involved his body being placed in a giant paper bag, from which he emerged without ripping the paper.

Escape in the physical realm can often be accomplished through practice, knowledge, and physical flexibility, but in the spiritual realm it’s not so simple. There are people in this life who sincerely desire to follow God, but they have disillusioned themselves into believing that they, like Houdini who escaped from physical chains, can escape the chains of sin through their own effort.

Spiritual Houdinis

They say things like, “I’ve got to do better,” or “I’ve got to try harder,” or “From now on I promise that I ...” The belief is that if they try hard enough, they will somehow escape the clutches of sin that have bound them for so long. These exercises in spiritual “escapism” are emotionally, spiritually, and often physically exhausting because one of two possible scenarios can occur.

1. They fail miserably to make the necessary changes and get discouraged by their weakness.

2. They actually succeed in a behavioral change and begin to believe that their promises are valid, even though an inner change has not taken place.

The Scriptures tell us that escaping from our sinful selves is virtually impossible if we intend to accomplish it on our own. In Jeremiah we are told that it is no more possible for us to escape this condition, than it is for a leopard to escape the spots that punctuate his fur. Our sinful condition is not just something that we do, it’s who we are, and there has to be a better way. There is!

“The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet” (James 4:10).

The submission of our entire lives to the Divine Creator is the only escape from our dreadful situation, and it involves more than behavior manipulation. Only God can re-create us, and when we have allowed this to happen, escape will come from the inside out.

Copyright © 2006. Reprinted with permission from e-gracenotes.org

Are You Using Your Today Well?

Thought: The only preparation for tomorrow is the right use of today.

Biblical text: "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." (Matthew 6:34)

A comic strip created by Charles Schulz addresses the need for each of us to make the most of the immediate present in our lives:

Charlie Brown is seen at bat. STRIKE THREE. He has struck out again and slumps down on the players' bench. He says, "Rats! I'll never be a big-league player. I just don't have it! All my life I've dreamed of playing in the big leagues, but I know I'll never make it.

"Lucy turns to console him. "Charlie Brown," she says, "You're thinking too far ahead. What you need to do is set yourself more immediate goals."

"Yes. Start with this next inning when you go out to pitch. See if you can walk out to the mound without falling down."

The first step toward walking into any future is the step that you take today. Make it a forward, positive, springy and light-hearted, energetic, well-aimed, purposeful step.

The steps you take today become the well-worn path of tomorrow.

Another Man's Crime

Thought: "When you make the sacrifice in marriage, you're sacrificing not to each other but to unity in a relationship" - Joseph Campbell

Bible text: “But the fact is, it was our pains he carried--our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us. We thought he brought it on himself, that God was punishing him for his own failures. But it was our sins that did that to him, that ripped and tore and crushed him--our sins! He took the punishment, and that made us whole. Through his bruises we are healed” (Isaiah 53:4-5).

Calvin Willis stepped out of the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola, his arms raised in victory. Willis had served 22 years—half his lifetime—behind prison bars for another man’s brutal crime. Post-conviction DNA testing in 2003 excluded Willis as the perpetrator of a 1981 rape for which he was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.

Despite a solid alibi and evidence that pointed toward another individual, witnesses’ accounts and a match between Willis’ blood type and fluids found at the scene persuaded a jury that Willis was guilty. Only after technological advances enabled further testing of the decades-old DNA was Willis exonerated.

It is unthinkable that Willis, or any other human being, would purposely accept the punishment for another’s crime. However, fully understanding the path His conviction would lead Him, Jesus suffered willingly for crimes he had no part in—the sins of countless generations to come. He took the wrongs of the beings He loved so much and made the crimes His own, accepting not only the disfiguring stigma of the sins themselves, but also the separation from God that was an inherent part of the process.

Healing Power

Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12 foretells the story of His great sacrifice. “But the fact is, it was our pains he carried--our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us. We thought he brought it on himself, that God was punishing him for his own failures. But it was our sins that did that to him, that ripped and tore and crushed him--our sins! He took the punishment, and that made us whole. Through his bruises we are healed” (Isaiah 53:4-5).

Christ knew we were imperfect. He could see each and every sin humans would commit throughout the centuries. He knew many would turn their back and refuse His sacrifice. And yet, we are told, like a lamb about to be sacrificed, Jesus lay down His life in an effort to save even one person who might choose life over sin and Christ over chaos (Isaiah 53:7).

While it is only natural for a human to seek justice over a wrongful conviction, Christ knew His acceptance of our sins would have wonderful eternal ramifications for those who would choose Him. Isaiah 53:12 states, “Therefore I'll reward him extravagantly--the best of everything, the highest honors--Because he looked death in the face and didn't flinch, because he embraced the company of the lowest. He took on his own shoulders the sin of the many, he took up the cause of all the black sheep.” For the cost of His suffering, we are invited to spend eternity with Him in a place created especially for us.

By Lauren Schwarz. Copyright © 2006 by GraceNotes. All rights reserved. Use of this material is subject to usage guidelines. Scripture taken from THE MESSAGE ®.

Soul sized issues

Bible text: Let us draw near [to God] with a true heart in full assurance of faith. Hebrews 10:22

Thought: Like cold water to a parched throat so is peace to a weary soul.

Prayer:Sovereign Father, as I begun this new day filled with responsibilities and soul sized issues; I am irresistibly drawn into Your presence by the magnetism of Your love and my need for your guidance. I come to You at Your invitation; in the quiet of intimate communion with You, the tightly wound springs of pressure and stress are released and a profound inner peace fills my heart and mind.

I hear again the impelling cadences of the drumbeat of Your Spirit calling me to press on in the battle for truth, righteousness, and justice. My mind snaps to full attention, and my heart salutes You as Sovereign Lord. You have given me a mind capable of receiving Your mind, an imagination able to envision Your plan and purpose for me, and a will ready to do Your will.

Help me to remember that no problem is too small to escape Your concern and no perplexity is too great to resist Your solutions. I know You will go before me to show me the way, behind me to press me forward, beside me to give me courage, above me to protect me, and within me to give me wisdom and discernment.

Lead on, oh King Eternal…in Your all-powerful name.

Genesis 20

Read the whole chapter of Genesis 20.

What we can learn from this is that deception can come just as easily by what you don't say. We can see here a great example of someone trying to stick to the letter of the law while missing the principle behind it entirely.

Someone once said that even "facts" come with interpretations and preconceived ideas. In what less-than-honest ways do you sometimes interpret the "facts"? Might you need to make something right in a case in which you, like Abraham, twisted the facts more by what you neglected to say than by what you actually said?

Learning Patience

Text: Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit. Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools. (Ecclesiastes 7:8,9 NIV).

Thought: Patience is a quality you admire in the driver behind you and scorn in the one ahead.

A man's car once stalled in heavy Friday evening traffic just as the light turned green. All his efforts to start the engine failed. A chorus of honking rose from the cars behind him.

Feeling just as frustrated as those other drivers eager to get home or to their weekend destinations, he finally got out of his car and walked back to the first driver and said, "I'm sorry, but I can't seem to get my car started. If you'll go up there and give it a try, I'll stay here and blow your horn for you."

The person who is chronically impatient rarely makes another person go faster or arrive earlier. Rather, the effects are nearly always negative - to others as well as to the impatient person. Accidents occur more frequently in haste. Ulcers, headaches, and other health problems develop more quickly. And relationships can become more readily strained.

As an antidote for impatience, try giving yourself "ten more minutes." Get up ten minutes earlier every morning, leave ten minutes earlier, arrive ten minutes ahead of schedule, and so forth. You'll likely arrive at the end of the day feeling much more relaxed.

Prayer: Father, I ask You to deliver me from self centredness and transform me into the image of Jesus Christ-Amen.

Serving God

Text: Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time. (1 Peter 5:6 NIV).

Thought: Most people wish to serve God - but only in an advisory capacity.

An old poem tells of a woman who was walking through a meadow one day. As she strolled along, meditating on nature, she came upon a field of golden pumpkins. In the corner of the field stood a majestic, huge oak tree.

The woman sat under the oak tree and began musing about the strange twists in nature. Why tiny acorns on huge branches and huge pumpkins on tiny vines. She thought, God blundered with Creation! He should have put the small acorns on the tiny vines and the large pumpkins on the huge branches.

Before long, the woman dozed off in the warmth of the late autumn sunshine. She was awakened when a tiny acorn bounced off her nose. Chuckling to herself, she amended her previous thinking, Maybe God was right after all!

In every situation, God knows far more about the people and circumstances involved than we can ever know. He alone sees the beginning from the ending. He alone knows how to create a Master Plan that provides for the good of all those who serve Him.

Prayer: Father, I place my trust and confidence in You. I surrender my will to You and receive Your joy and peace-Amen.

Work doesn't make a person, relationships do!

No one ever said on his or her deathbed: I wish I had spent more time at work!

Biblical texts: I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. (Ecclesiastes 2:18)

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men. (Colossians 3:23) Dutch author and priest Henri Nouwen admits in his book "In the Name of Jesus" that he felt as if he was in a "rut" in his life for more than twenty years. Nouwen seemed to have it made, with an outstanding academic resume and a noble field of study. Yet, he said, "As I entered into my fifties, I came face-to face with a simple question, "Did becoming older bring me closer to Jesus. After twenty-five years of priesthood, I found myself praying poorly, living somewhat isolated from other people, and very much preoccupied with burning issues, I woke up one day with the realisation that I was living in a very dark place."

Nouwen asked God to show him where He wanted him to go and the Lord made it clear to him that he should leave his prestigious role as a distinguished professor and join the L'Arche communities for mentally handicapped people. In Nouwen's words, "God said, Go and live among the poor in spirit, and they will heal you." So he did. He faced numerous lessons, some painful, a few humiliating, but in all, he learned how to be a humble servant and a compassionate, caring friend. Nouwen came to realise: it's not work that makes a person, but rather, relationships.

With God, all things are possible!

You can accomplish more in one hour with God than one lifetime without Him.

Biblical Text: Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible". (Matthew 19:26)

Rachel and Jim owned a commercial building, half of which Jim used for his dental practice. For fifteen years, they had experienced no difficulty in renting out the other half. They counted on the extra income to pay their bills, and then they lost their renter. A real estate agent told them, "Forget about advertising for a while. Absolutely nobody is renting."

To ease her financial worries, Rachel started swimming laps at her local YMCA pool. One day when she was feeling especially anxious, she decided to pray as she swam, using the alphabet to keep track of the number of laps. She focused on adjectives to describe God, starting with the letter A. "You are the almighty God," she prayed on lap one. "A benevolent God, a beautiful God," she prayed on the next lap, and then, "You are a caring, creative, can-do God." By the time she had completed 26 laps, an hour had passed and her fears were gone. She knew God would provide.

A short time later, a physical therapist called to say she had seen the "For Rent" sign in the window and asked to see the office. It was what she wanted. So, she and her partner rented the space. Rachel still prays while swimming laps. "After all," she says, "I've discovered God's goodness stretches from A to Z!"

Where are you, and where do you want to be?

Laziness and poverty are cousins.

Biblical text: A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man. (Proverbs 24:33,34)

One day, a grandfather told his grandchildren about his coming to America. He told of the trains and ship that he took from his home in Eastern Europe. He told of being processed at Ellis Island and how he had gone to a cafeteria in lower Manhattan to get something to eat. There, he sat down at an empty table and waited quite some time for someone to take his order. Nobody came. Finally, a woman with a tray full of food sat down opposite him and explained to him how a cafeteria works.

She said, "You start at that end" ? pointing toward a stack of trays ? "and then go along the food line and pick out what you want. At the other end, they'll tell you how much you have to pay."

The grandfather reflected a moment and then said, "I soon learned that's how everything works in America. Life's a cafeteria here. You can get anything you want ? even very great success ? if you are willing to pay the price. But you'll never get what you want if you wait for someone to bring it to you. You have to get up and get it yourself."

The difference between where you are and where you want to be can often be summed up in one word: work.

Positive thinking overcomes...

Thought: It isn't your position that makes you happy or unhappy, it's your disposition.

Bible text: But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. (1 Timothy 6:6,7 NIV).

A traditional Supervisor's Prayer states: Lord, when I am wrong, make me willing to change. When I am right, make me easy to live with. So strengthen me that the power of my example will far exceed the authority of my rank.

A positive attitude may not directly change your circumstances, but it will change the way you respond to your circumstances. The responses of positive people are far more likely to be:

When Reward Outweighs Recognition?

Thought: Authority makes some people grow and others just swell.

Biblical text: The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. (Matthew 23:11, 12)

Everybody knows of Isaac Newton's famed encounter with a falling apple, and how Newton introduced the laws of gravity and revolutionized astronomical studies. But few know that if it weren't for Edmund Halley, the world may never have heard of Newton. Halley was the one who challenged Newton to think through his original theories. He corrected Newton's mathematical errors and prepared geometrical figures to support his discoveries. It was Halley who coaxed the hesitant Newton to write his great work, "Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy." And it was Halley who edited and supervised its publication, financing its printing even though Newton was wealthier and could better afford the cost.

Historians have called Halley's relationship with Newton one of the most selfless examples in science. Newton began almost immediately to reap the rewards of prominence; Halley received little credit. He did use the principles Newton developed to predict the orbit and return of a comet that would later bear his name, but since Halley's Comet only returns every 76 years, few hear his name. Still, Halley didn't care who received credit as long as the cause of science was advanced. He was content to live without fame.

Sometimes just the reward of what we are doing far outweighs the recognition we often think we need to have.

The Unbreakable Bond of Marriage

May our Father be with you always,
Never try to walk alone.
Keep Him in your hearts
And always in your home.
Each night before you rest
As in your bed you lay.
Join close hand in hand
Then begin to pray.
Call upon our Father
To strengthen this bond so tight.
Forgetting all trials and fears
As you hold close every night.
For two that join as one
And never cease each day,
Lifting their prayer to heaven
In this very special way,
Will only see their love increase
Added in every measure,
For two who pray to Our Father
Will always stay together.


Copyright© 2001 Jeffrey Campbell

On keeping confidences...

Thought: A shut mouth gathers no foot.

Biblical text: He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin. (Proverbs 13:3 NIV).

Constance Cameron tells a lesson her mother taught her. One day, when she was about eight, she was playing beside an open window. Inside, Mrs Brown was confiding a personal problem to Constance's mother. After Mrs Brown had gone, the mother realised that Constance had heard everything that had been said. She called her in and said, "If Mrs Brown had left her purse here today, would we give it to anyone else?"

"Of course not," the girl said. Her mother went on, "Mrs Brown left something more precious than her pocketbook today. She left a story that could make many people unhappy. That story is not ours to give to anyone. It is still hers, even though she left it here. So we shall not give it to anyone. Do you understand?"

She did. And from that day on, whenever a friend would share a confidence or even engage in careless gossip, she considered what they said to be the personal property of the other person - and not hers to give to anyone else.

The old saying bears great truth: "If you don't have something positive to say about someone or something, don't say anything."

Death Will End

Thought: Live life so completely that when death comes to you like a thief in the night, there will be nothing left for him to steal.

Bible text: "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4).

I can still remember the night that my sister received the news that changed her life. A neighbor came running to the door and breathlessly told us that a long distance call was waiting for her at grandma's house. We didn't have a telephone yet, so the entire family quickly piled into the car and we rode the half-mile distance with her to grandma's house.

The soft tick-tock of the living room regulator clock was punctuated by my sister's ragged sobs. My mother's soft voice quietly shushed my five-year old inquiries about the terrible event that had occurred. A longtime boyfriend was dead, and my sister could not contain her sorrow. The following weeks were filled with emotion as she struggled to understand why the brave young soldier that she adored was gone. He was a medic in the Vietnam conflict and was mortally wounded while attempting to reach a fallen buddy.

It was then, at the tender age of five, that I realized that death is an indiscriminate dream stealer. My sister's life was profoundly affected, and my own young life was filled with questions that I couldn't seem to answer. One of those questions was, "why did he have to die?" It didn't seem fair. He was young, handsome, and sure seemed to like me whenever I came around him. As small as I was, I still thought he would have made a great brother-in-law, and his loss troubled me.

Why do we lose those we love? Somehow a pat answer like, "because we live in a sinful world" just hasn't brought the closure and peace that I long for. To lose someone that I care about is painful, life altering, and I'm tired of it. I've had my fill of watching people I love pass away, and the only thing that keeps me coping is the thought that someday we'll never have to say goodbye again.

The Bible says, "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4).

I may not understand it all now, but I'm strangely comforted to think that someday I will. And when that day comes, death, and all the pain that accompanies it will be a thing of the past.

Saved by Hope

Thought: "In all things it is better to hope than to despair." -Johann Wolfgang van Goethe

Bible text: "For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?" (Romans 8:24)

We cannot exist without hope. We need something to look forward to. Today's disappointments make us long for better tomorrows.

Success doesn't do away with our need for hope. Even a lifetime of accomplishments and happiness fails to bring complete satisfaction. There must be something more to live for.

This is what prompted the Apostle Paul to say, "we are saved by hope" (Romans 8:24).

The Bible says there is more to life than meets the eye, ". . . the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal" (2 Corinthians 4:18). Life's true success is attained when we learn to place proper value on our houses, vehicles, investments and personal properties. When we do this, we'll realize that all the material things we have are only ours to use temporarily. Sooner or later, we leave them all behind. I once had a neighbor who frequently remarked, "I have yet to see a Brinks truck following a hearse!"

It isn't hard to see why things never bring lasting happiness and fulfillment. We need to make our heaviest investments in those securities that last. Why not consider the following portfolio, "now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love" (1 Corinthians 13:13). These lasting enjoyments may be experienced through
(1) trust in God and in His Word, the Bible;
(2) through quality time spent with family and loved ones;
(3) and through a joyful expectation of endless life in the world to come.

These are the only things that endure.

Integrity and Patience build character

Thought: Reputation is made in a moment: character is built in a lifetime.

Biblical text: I will maintain my righteousness and never let go of it; my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live. (Job 27:6 NIV).

A man once had a friend who was a skilled potter. He often went to watch him at work as he molded the clay into various vessels. One day he asked his friend how he determined what he was going to make. The potter said he had discovered that when he was rested, he tended to make beautiful things, but when he was tired, he made more ordinary vessels for menial uses. As the potter reflected on this, he concluded that when he was relaxed, he had both the ability to focus and the patience to make something beautiful. Often times the process of making a perfect object involved crushing an almost completed vase or bowl back into a lump so that he might start over. Beautiful objects also require that he be much more careful at each stage. When he was tired, by contrast, he was less able to focus, less patient, and thus more apt to make mistakes and more likely to resort to making items that did not demand such precision.

So it is with our lives. Building character takes focus and patience, with attention to detail and an ability to be consistent over time. While God is ultimately our Potter, we also play the role of potter in forming our own character. The more stressed we are, the less likely we are to create a character of beauty.

How to deal with 'know-it-all' people

Thought: The only fool bigger than the person who knows it all is the person who argues with him.

Biblical text: "Whoever corrects a mocker invites insult; whoever rebukes a wicked man incurs abuse." (Proverbs 9:7)

When Charles Spurgeon was still a boy preacher, he was warned about a certain woman with a reputation for being extremely quarrelsome. He was told that she intended to give him a tongue-lashing the moment she saw him next.

Spurgeon said, "All right, but that's a game two can play."

Shortly thereafter she met him and began to assault him with a flood of verbal abuse. He simply smiled back at her and said, "Oh, yes, thank you. I am quite well. Thank you for asking. I hope you are the same."

His remarks were followed by another tirade of know-it-all comments - this time voiced at a slightly higher volume. He responded again, smiling quietly, "Yes, it does look rather as if it might rain. I think I had better be getting on."

"Bless the man!" the woman exclaimed and then concluded, "He?s as deaf as a post. What?s the use of storming at him!"

Never again did she assault Spurgeon with her arguments. And never did he tell her what he had done! There's no point in arguing with know-it-all people. Better to let them have their say and walk on.

oh my sweet teeth!

i can never forget this couple of days after i've had underwent my first surgical extraction of my right upper and lower molars better known as "wisdom teeth".

to tell u honestly, i couldn't do it the first time i saw my oral surgeon.why on earth will he begin with statements concerning complications? it made me doubt of his skills and capabilities...but after talking to my mahal and to the assistant who never leaves me, i was convinced that he was just telling me what conditions i have to expect after the operation.

It lasted for like 30-40 minutes for both of them and haven't exactly figured out it was done already...i was quite surprised it ended sooner as i expected. my right cheeks seemed bloated and i realized later, my teeth socket is bleeding so much...ssscarrrry!!!! grrrrrrr!

I really prayed a lot it would stop soon but it lasts for about 12 hours i think..the first few hours is really bothering me, very uncomfortable as the lower socket continued to bleed longer than i could bare. I could have gone to the doctor but i didn't. what i could remember is i whispered so many prayers and i believe it soothes me like a calm sea.

Now, its exactly 42 hours, 2 days, right? after that disturbing moments... im not petrified anymore...i am reassured by the tender-loving care given to me by my mahal...thank you so much mahal :) u made my day so wonderful even in my eerie moments... thank u also to ate amore, leah, macel, cathy and all of u who called me and keep in touch with me this moments of my life. It made me treasure ur friendship so much more than u could think of!

Please Lord comfort me as i go thru this healing process!
November 17, 2006 at 03:47 AM Permalink Comments (0)