You Can't Come In

The scanner barked the information to the patrol officer. "Two males beating on a church door. Inside, the members are watching a movie. They just want the men to go away."

People beating on the doors to get in and members trying to make them go away? Am I just dense, or is there something wrong with this picture?

Yes there is something wrong, but there has been something wrong for centuries.

Four men tore away a roof to get to Jesus. Inside were the curious, the self-righteous, and observers of the Jesus phenomenon. They were in the way. They prevented the needy from getting in.

Bartemaeus, the blind man, wanted his sight. With an obnoxiously load voice, he pleaded for Jesus' mercy. Instead of bringing him to Jesus, many sternly told him to shut up!

Parents brought their children to Jesus so he could touch them. But Jesus' own disciples were rebuking the parents. His own people were in the way.

The people of Dalmanuthia needed assistance in meeting Jesus. Their leaders insisted Jesus show them a sign as proof of his authority. The very people who could have helped, blocked access to the Savior.

Real occurrences. Real people. Real needs. But good people got in the way.

I ask myself these questions.

• Does my occasional apathetic attitude get in the way of people who really need Jesus?
• Am I in church to see, or be seen, by others?
• Is my attitude preventing someone from knowing Jesus?
• Do I want people to improve my life, or do I just want them to go away and leave me alone?
• Does my sense of church etiquette get in the way of someone crying for His attention?

What answers do you get when you ask yourself these questions?

What Jesus Said About “Things”

How can they market goods for such a low cost? Black Friday specials are excessively entrancing. I do not need a 52” HDTV, but the prices have been deeply slashed. I can save so much, just by using a credit card in the middle of the night.

Sobering up from my dream-like misplacement of conscientiousness, I grill myself, “Am I setting my sights on stockpiling essentials or am I fixating on the gadgets I crave?”

These three posts review Jesus' charges and fundamentals about articles we have a passion for in contrast to our essential goods. Questions may be hard-nosed or thorny. Please, we aware.

Jesus made clear “things” should not be a temptation.

Read Matthew 4:1-4. Jesus fasted for 40 days. Fasting is more than not eating. When it was meal time, he dedicated himself to prayer and contemplation.

After His fast, He was hungry. The devil used His hunger to tempt him to change stones (a non-satisfying “thing”) into bread (a satisfying “thing”). Because He was focused by fasting, He effortlessly trampled the tempter by reciting the sacred writings. Jesus held “things” as wants.

Jesus expected His followers to walk away from their tools of the trade.

In Matthew 4:18-22 He called Peter and Andrew. They left THEIR NETS and followed Him. He called James and John. They left THEIR BOAT, their hired help, and their father. They followed Him.

Some trades require workers to own their tools. Are you one? If you have changed vocations, are you saving the tools in the event you might need extra income? What does keeping the tools declare about your leaning on God for essentials?

Jesus expects disciples to lean on God for daily food, and everything else.

Matthew 6:8”...For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.” Check out Matthew 6:11 “Give us this day our daily bread.” And Luke adds, in 11:3, “Give us day by day our daily bread.”

If we count on God for daily food, clothes, home, etc, why do we distress ourselves this time of year with all this optional stuff? Can God not fill our needs? Does He need our helping-hand to get just the right kind, size, or name brand?

Jesus said not to keep your treasures down here.

Why does Jesus discuss moths, rust, and thieves in Matthew 6:19-20? Don't security lights keep the thieves away? Doesn't ADT keep our homes safe? Why do we have banks?

Is His statements really about moths, rust, and thieves, or is it about where our hearts are? Read verse 21, or Luke 12:34.

Do we trust our stuff, or the need-supplying God? Do we lust for our peer's recognition (derived from our things), or confirmation from God?

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What does Jesus assert about serving mammon? Wastefulness? Rewards for serving God? Find the answers in What Jesus Said About “Things” Part 2. Please read soon.

Part 3 addresses these topics:

• Using Things for Christ
• Financial contributions
• Rich going to heaven?
• Automatic rejection for being rich?
• Lawsuits over possessions
• Rewards for helping
• Spending money on haters
• Successful business

Thank you for reading. Please place comments in the box below. Thanks

Overboard

To be trained by a Rabbi in Jesus' day, you were expected to roam with your rabbi at all times. No matter where he goes, you go. You meet lepers. You approach the delirious. You are a guest at a dinner with the most repulsive people on the planet. You go everywhere so you will not miss anything.

You show up at special functions with your Rabbi. You discern His attention to the despised. You ponder the time you and The Rabbi ate snacks from the field, and were criticized. You focus on your Teacher when He eats with the self-righteous Pharisee. You watch Him explain forgiveness to the Pharisee. You help Him feed 5000 men. You meditate on the Master's management of two opposite sisters. You go everywhere to learn everything.

Hypocrites are as dangerous as deadly dynamite. They compliment you, then carve up your back. They wear suits on Sunday, but carry pitchforks on Monday. Strangely, your Master loves each one. So you consider how He gently corrects them. You scrutinize His stories offering change. You study Him in situations as He challenges men to change. You concentrate on the direct challenges to your Rabbi, and how He stands His ground.

You saw Him teach a healed leper to keep the commands. You discern His use miracles as a teaching moment. You'll notice His use of the old testament. You listen to Him give men God's heart-based living instead of ceremony-based heartless obedience. You grasp His memorable analogies becoming anchors.

You are hand picked to witness His glory. You shield your eyes from His glowing clothes. You see your Rabbi as He was before. You feel the cloud. You hear God's thundering voice commanding your attention to your Rabbi. 

In discipleship, you learn by observing, by imitating your Teacher, and by ALWAYS being close. 

Now Jesus has sent you, Peter, and the other disciples across the deadly Galilean sea after an exhausting day. 

Jesus, your most-loved Instructor, is spending a large part of His night in prayer.

It is about 4 o'clock in the morning. You are excruciatingly tired, along with the others. Row 10 feet forward. Blown back 8 feet. The wind-driven waves are wicked. The sea at night is dangerous, but you are safe IN the boat. Despite the comfortless conditions, all of you are IN a good ship.

"What is that out on the water," Matthew says. "It's a ghost!" exclaims Judas. You are thinking, 'This sea kills! That is a ghost! Not good!' But the ghost is walking past. 

"It's Jesus," John says.

Passionate Peter wants to be with Jesus every moment. He says, "If it is you, tell me to come." Jesus replied, "Come on."

In disbelief, you watch Peter roll up his pant legs. (Oh, yeah. They did not have pants.) But you are watching Peter walking on water. 

He is successfully doing the impossible. 

What are the similarities between Peter and a parachutist? 

• Both get out of perfectly good vessels. 
• Both trust their ability to do what the instructor says. 
• Both experience success.

As Rabbi followers wanting success, we must get out of the boat. We must be with our Rabbi. We trust him. Now, we must leave what is safe. We must believe we can obey the commands. 

Only when we go OVERBOARD will we experience God's success. Only when we get out of the boat, will we do the impossible successfully.

Not Even McDonalds??

I have heard how companies launch with very limited financial resources, but note what these traveling salesmen were asked to do.

They were forbidden to carry any kind of food with them. They could not carry a picnic. They could not use a lunch bag, lunch box or thermos. They were forbidden to carry food.

These salesmen could not carry a suitcase, no backpack, no duffel bag. Purses were prohibited. Even Wal Mart bags were banned.

As for money, think miserly. They could carry no cash. Debit cards were declined. Credit card were cut off. Checks were curbed. They could not have any nickels, dimes, or pennies.

There was no method of taking any extra clothes, if allowed. They were not.

The ONLY thing they could take with them was a large stick. That is all! And it was for defense against some demented dog or a maniac mugger.

Under these conditions, what chance of success does the company have? I ask an  acquaintance.“Somewhere between slim and none,” he replied. I agree. Don’t you?

Jesus sent the apostles on a "mini" mission to convert people, cure diseases, and cast out evil spirits. They did. And yet, the conditions above is how they traveled.

What is more, Jesus had them stay in the home of whoever would take them in.

What made this venture viable?

When I Grow Up...

Yes, you have heard me ramble about some tricks in commercials, and how producers control your thinking. But not all commercials are sinister. One by an investment firm begins with individuals, at work, saying, “When I grow up, I want to….” One hopes to repair old houses. Another will work with children.

As a Christian, I have recently discovered three areas where 'growing up' would be useful. See if you need these same three.


I need to grow up, mature, in my RELATIONSHIPS. Jesus spoke with authority in Matt 5:43-48. He reminded the people on the mountain what they had always heard – to love your neighbor and hate your enemy. Then, with godly authority, He said, “But I say to you, … Love your enemies.” He added pray for the persecutor.


I need to practice loving those not lovable, and being persistently prayerful for the persecutor. How? The same way Jesus loved me when I was His enemy, a sinner (Rom 5:8 ). He loved sacrificially. He loved firmly, demanding the best from his disciples. He loved, taught, and prayed for those Pharisees and Sadducees, in spite of the unending death schemes.


Tell me this. When should I start growing up in my relationships?


I need to grow up, mature, in my DISCIPLESHIP.

Paul informed the Ephesians (4:11-14) of the responsibility members have to each other. Members should actively mature other Christians. Maturing disciples are found serving other members of the body (church). They continue until the entire group is “no longer infants,” tossed around by everyone’s religious opinions and tricks.

How do I become a mature disciple? Using the same method I used to mature as a teacher. While at Henderson State University learning to be a biology teacher, I was constantly told, “you will not thoroughly learn your subject, until you try to teach it.” They could not have been more truthful! It was after my second attempt to teach a cells that I began to understand cells. Now, the basics make sense to me and are easy to explain.

I will not mature as a disciple until I start serving fellow Christians. It takes me more than one attempt (I never get anything right the first time.) After I have taught other Christians, after I have visited dying Christians, after I have sit with them in the bleak days after a family loss, after I have humbly corrected their life-errors, after I have spent my life for them will my discipleship mature.


Tell me, when should I begin maturing my discipleship?

When I grow up, I will mature my FOCUS.

The Apostle Paul demonstrated his singular focus. It is in Phil 3:12-15. He had ONE goal in mind. To achieve his goal, he put aside his past as a persecutor, and strained (NIV) toward the goal of obtaining the resurrection from the dead.

Have you watched a lion tamer? He takes three things into the cage: a pistol, a whip, and, most importantly, a stool. Holding the stool by the seat, he points the legs toward the lion. The multiple legs distract the lion. The lion cannot decided which one he will attack. Lions are dangerous when focused, but when distracted, they are no threat.

Is the devil entering our cage with a stool? Has he learned distracted Christians are no danger to him? Let’s see. Tomorrow you get up early, fix breakfast while getting dressed. Then there is work. Then pee-wee ball practice. Then supper fixed. Then persuading kids to do their homework, while you do laundry. Get your teenager to stop texting long enough to answer your questions, find out tomorrow’s schedule, and tell everyone it is time for bed. Finally, you have time to get on Facebook and update your status ("I am drained.") and see what others have done. A quick look at your email. And sometime, somehow, you were taken by how Abney was stalked by a man on NCIS.


Hmmmm??? Distracted?


Christians lose their focus. Our focus should be in changing our family and society. We lose our focus of showing the power of Jesus to friends. What happened? Those all-consuming activities in life.

Again, tell me. When will I set my focus on the author and finisher of my faith (Heb 12:2)?

Zeb and Sons Fishing Company

Zeb had always been a commercial fisherman. He had followed in the steps of his father, a fisherman. Over the last decade he and his boys had experienced phenomenal company growth and expansion. Grandpa would have been proud of the boy’s work ethics. And his dad would have been proud when Zeb began to hire employees to accommodate increased demand.

This success had translated into a better income for the company, himself, the boys, and their families. The company, with freshly hired help, now could add two boats to their mini-fleet. Now they could fish, dry, pack and ship two and sometimes three shifts each day.

But his sons, Jimmy and Johnny, were something else. They were true Galileans. Yes, they were brothers, and yes, they fought among themselves. But he, nor his wife, could cool their tempers. They were a pair of hot-heads. And they fed off each other’s anger making them fierce in debates. If you found them separated you might win a heated discussion, but if the second one showed up, it was time to hush and leave. Zeb called them Thunder's Sons.

Although they were fierce competitors, they could be equally loving and thoughtful. There were times when Johnny was young that he wanted to spend extra time with mom, and he could because of the success of the business. Jimmy had an uncanny ability to see the needy and empathize with them. Zeb didn't understand where this came from considering how wealthy the boys had always lived.

But about a week ago Zeb and Sons Fishing suddenly became Zeb's Fishing. No, there was no mutiny. Both his sons had suddenly quit. Zeb could make no sense of it. Here the two successful, hard working sons had a growing company to manage after his death and a very healthy income. But they had just walked out. It was so sudden. They just left Zeb and the hired help in the boat. They didn't wait to get home. They didn't discuss this major change in the business with him. They just left. And what was more, when they left, they walked off with those small-time competitors from down the road, Pete and Andy.

He could not understand what this Jesus from Nazareth had to offer that he couldn't give them. He just did not understand!

What Do I Smell?

I've read that people in Galilee are a bit rough. Well, OK, they are rough as sand paper. They don't get along with outsiders very well, and you better keep your political ideology to yourself. Education, especially in religion, is next to nothing. Yes they teach their children to respect and obey the scriptures, and they might make the mandatory yearly trip to Jerusalem. Don't bother asking for much more unless you are one of them. And Jesus was one of them.

I've also heard how sailors are a very foul-mouthed group. They can't talk without cursing. Pete and Andy were sailing fisherman. They were sailors of the most offensive odoriferous kind (they stank!), but we don't actually know about their language.

And these fellas were also brothers. Did they fight? What brothers don't? And when there are fights, or very strong disagreements, someone usually walks away. But if you and your brother are in a small fishing vessel on the Sea of Gallilee and an argument ensues, either one of you gives up or someone must swim to shore.

It was under these circumstances the leader of the 'hottest' religious movement in years came walking by their storefront (Ok, no storefront. They were actually washing their stink-ified nets). He told these two cats-in-bag to follow him (become a student of his teaching and person). He promised them they would become the ultimate fishermen, and get their own TV show. (Okay, Okay. The last part isn't exactly true. There was no TV deal.) 

Pete and Andy could hardly believe what he said. It was the one chance in their lifetime. They didn't need to discuss it or fight over which one would go. Both men immediately dropped their nets and walked off. They chose to follow.

Today, that same Jesus asks you and me, with all our bad, smelly, offensive habits, to drop who we are, walk off from our rough-cut personalities, educational background, financial limits and other imperfections, and begin copying the perfect one and imitating his ways.

Now, are we going to argue about it, or will we both get busy dropping our history???

"Not Into the Desert!"

Sammy's GMC truck could go faster over those bumpy, pot-holed dirt roads faster than Dad's Olds that I was driving. I had a much bigger motor, but he had ground clearance. For the last 30 minutes I had chased & tailgated him all over the roads around home. I got a break when he took a lumpy three-sides-of-a-box dirt road around the field behind Climatic of Clinton (a local industry). He didn't know I had hunted rabbits there about a month earlier. I thought I had finally found a way to win this game. So I turned the Olds into the open field to cut across it and head Sammy off. The friends in my car saw we were about to take him by surprise. And then that one HUGE clump off grass went under the car lifting the rear wheels off the ground. The high-centered vehicle stopped. Then we discovered the clump was surrounded with 6 inch deep water in a 30-foot circle.  It was dark. It was late. And Dad's car is stuck in the middle of a water-logged field. That is when Sammy did something I respected. He, and his truck load of friends, came to attempt the impossible rescue. 

Why this anecdote of a stupid teen-age boy? Because most of us will follow and repeat what we see in the lives of people we respect.

Respect is not just passed out like candy from a bank teller. Generally, it is earned. I already respected Sammy because he was in the high school band and was more successful than me. And then he returned to help me when it was not required. He earned more respect. Respect appears to be earned through living through similar life experiences successfully.

Jesus has faced life like we know it, including temptations. He was in that uninhabited place for almost a month and a half, Matthew says. He missed all his meals. And he was in danger of being eaten or injured from the wild beasts. After 40 days he was hungry, exhausted, and lonely. The ease of making stones into bread must have looked as good to him as the 'forbidden fruit' was to Eve. The false expectation of power over the people, instead of loneliness, must have been appealing. And because of his being tempted he can understand our temptations. So, we can respect & follow Him. He has had similar life experiences. 

Plus, we regard him as successful. He gas done what we cannot do -- overcome temptation. He never sinned. His suffering sin’s penalty was because of our temptation failures, not his.

The New King James Version says in Mark 1:12 that the Spirit DROVE him into the wilderness. What does that mean?  The Greek word used here can be either 1) to cast out, with the notions of violence, or 2) to command or cause to depart in haste including a) drawn out with force, to tear out, and a force overcoming an opposite force but without violence. Either way you chose, Jesus didn't volunteer to go. I personally don't see Jesus being violently thrown into the wilderness. So I must conclude that his 'force' was an unwillingness which was opposed by the Spirit (another force). Since Jesus chose to follow God's will, I see him consenting to follow the will of the Spirit (force).

My struggle and maybe yours too, is to not 'volunteer' to be tempted. In my case I put myself in situations where temptations, and the subsequent sin, can occur. By not being on my toes I have 'volunteered' de facto. 

I need to be a better disciple in how I follow and repeat the patterns of my respected Lord. How about you?

"You want ME to do WHAT???"

He might have said, "You want me to do what???" But he didn't. He felt he was just an ordinary man, but one working hard to dedicate himself to Jesus. No, he didn't live it perfectly. He made ordinary mistakes that any follower might make. He used ordinary language, not like an orator. He lived in an ordinary Jewish home, not like those upper-crust Pharisees in Jerusalem. His home was plain and adequate, not large with plenty of servants. He was just an ordinary man.

But this particular ordinary man had been asked by the Lord to do what most would think as crazy, if not insane. His God-directed mission was to go to the world's most potent persecutor, the Disciple-Killer. He was to talk to this legally-empowered, follower-destroyer about his inability to see and his need to immersed to have his sins forgiven. And the persecutor knew more Bible than he did. An extra ordinary missions given to an ordinary man.

I can just see this ordinary follower approaching the dwelling of the persecutor. I see him hesitate just a moment, before his knocked on the door. I am sure he swallowed twice and took a deep breath. Then he did what God had told him.

Without hesitation, intensely, anxiously, almost hurriedly, the persecutor listens to the words. The persecutor jumps up and tells everyone to "Hurry up! We are going to the river right now!" He follows every instruction of the ordinary man.

The ordinary man can hardly believe what is happening. He is in the river. He baptizing the repentant persecutor. He hears himself say, "I baptize you in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost for the remission of your sins." All he was doing was what God said,  "Go,...". A simple man following simple orders.

I am sure he didn't know all the 'softening up' God had done with this tormentor. He didn't know the awkwardness the persecutor felt. He did not know the pleading prayers the oppressor whispered. The persecutor's fasting may not have been obvious to this simple, ordinary man. The ordinary man had heard a simple message from his Lord, and did it. Now, this little plain man felt like a dragon slayer.

It is then I remember a passage from the Book of Acts about how Jewish priests became followers.

I know an ordinary man in Missouri I'll call 'Steve'. He is about as ordinary as they come. He looks after the animals that provide his income. He lives in his wife's grandparents home. He drives small cars and big trucks. He wears blue-jeans and a cowboy hat often. He is just an ordinary man.

But this ordinary man visits with his friends about Jesus. It doesn't matter to him if they are leaders in the Baptist, Methodist, or Pentecostal churches. He doesn't know if God has been 'softening them up' or not. He talks with them about their souls. He doesn't see himself as a dragon-slayer. I'm certain he seems himself as an ordinary follower who heard his master say, "Go....".

Do you feel religious leaders are too staunch and unchangeable for you, an ordinary follower, to attempt to study with them? Do you feel they know more Bible than you do? Are they unreachable? Or are you afraid? Do you pretend to not hear the Almighty One saying, "Go,..."???
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Wal Mart Sacks

Hi,

I write this letter to you so you can know my story and the truth I face.

A few years ago my husband and I fell on financial hard times. He couldn't get a job. My job only kept food on the table. There were no extras. We couldn't buy clothes. For some reason the bank didn't foreclose. 

One day a gentle, sweet, older woman came to our door. She had heard of our situation and wanted to help. "No need to be embarrassed," she said. "Many others were having hard times too." So, she handed us four Wal Mart sacks and left. 

Inside were hand-made pants and a shirt for my husband. I found two home-made print dresses. By the time I wiped my tears away the lady was gone. I didn't get to say thanks. I felt bad.

Then, three days ago, I was visiting my neighbor, Sue. She told me of an older lady, a Jesus follower, had died. Sue said the woman had come to her home while her husband, Jack, was suffering from cholera, and had given them clothes. It sounded so familiar. I asked about the woman's appearance. It was her. Sue said her home was four blocks away. 

I rushed to her house to see what I could do. When I got there, they were waiting for a man named Peter to get there (relative??). I told the people what she had done for me and my neighbor. Several said Dor had done the same for them. Others said Tabby just wanted to help others. I went into the bedroom where they had her 'laid out'. It was her. I cried hard as I left, even though others were saying she was in a better place with Jesus (whoever he is).

Are they crazy? Nothing about death makes for anything 'better'.

Why is it that the good people die? 

Then today, I saw a sweet, gentle woman carrying some Wal Mart sacks. "No," I thought, "It can't be." From behind it looked just like her.

I found myself walking toward her. Her name came to mind. "Dor?" I called.  She turned. It was the same caring eyes. She had the same upturned nose, thin eyebrows, radiant smile, and chipped front tooth. "Dor, is that you?" I asked.

"Sure is," she said.

"But the last time I saw you, forgive me, you were 'laid out' on your bed. You were dead."

"Sure was," she replied.

"So how can you be standing here talking with me," I heard myself asking.

"My fellow-disciple, Peter, got there. They say he ran everyone out of my bedroom. Then he prayed in the name of Jesus for my spirit to come back to my body. Next thing I new, there was Peter in my bedroom! I shushed him out of the room. Can't have people talking bad about me, you know. When the people attending my viewing and visitation saw me, they gave a big 'Whoop'. They hugged me. Jesus, through Peter, had brought me back to life."

"Who is this Jesus," I asked.

---------------

This Bible-based fictional story reminds us of four struggles:

• We need to decide if Jesus can bring people back to life, or not.
• The effect we have on people when we do simple, kind things for them, especially when they are hurting.
• The result of disciples doing what Jesus did can (will) change people's attitude about the Master.
• Our neighbors may not know the real Jesus because we haven't show Him to them.

Which one are you working on?

Alcohol's Debris

If I had no religious inclination I would not touch alcohol. Here is why.

The National Institutes of Health's division on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) said in 2004, "We do know that heavy drinking may have extensive and far–reaching effects on the brain, ranging from simple “slips” in memory to permanent and debilitating conditions that require lifetime custodial care." Additionally, ladies who drink during pregnancy contribute to Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, which "... can lead to a range of physical, learning, and behavioral effects."

A Wikipedia article Short Term Effects of Alcohol adds, "Moderate alcohol consumption 30–60 minutes before sleep, although decreasing sleep onset latency, disrupts sleep architecture" including, "...late night disruptions in sleep maintenance." Even with moderate amounts, "Short-term effects of alcohol include the risk of injuries, violence and foetal damage."

The Partnership for a Drug-Free America list many negative results of consuming alcohol. They list dizziness, slurred speech, disturbed sleep, nausea, vomiting, impaired judgment and coordination, and "increase the incidence ... of aggressive acts including domestic violence and child abuse." To this long list they added headache, thirst, fatigue, severe anxiety, tremors, hallucinations, convulsions, and "permanent damage to vital organs such as the brain and liver," Fetal alcohol syndrome with its cases of "mental retardation and other irreversible physical abnormalities" and "children of alcoholic parents are at greater risk than other children of becoming alcoholics" conclude their list.

Answers.com says 25,000 people die unnecessarily each year in America from alcohol-related car wrecks.  George Washington Medical Center says, "Alcohol costs American business an estimated $134 billion in productivity losses, mostly due to missed work: 65.3 percent of this cost was caused by alcohol-related illness, 27.2 percent due to premature death, and 7.5 percent to crime."

Each of these problems carries with it its own destructive patterns involving family members, employment, government aid, law enforcement, and psychiatric effects. Who wants any of these problems?

But the fact is I am a religious person. I can avoid all these devil-derived problems if I will listen to God. What has he said about strong drink?

In the Old Testament:

• Lev. 10:9 The priests should not drink wine before coming to worship.
• Prov 20:1 "Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler, And whoever is intoxicated by it is not wise."
• Prov 23:20-21 speaks of heavy drinkers coming to poverty. 
• Prov. 23:30 and its context reveals who has deep sadness, contentions, complaints, and "wounds without cause."
• Prov 31:4 reminds kings and rulers not to drink wine or strong drink.

In the New Testament: 

• Luke 1:15.   John the Baptizer was not to drink wine or liquor.
• Rom 14:21 speaks of the effect of drinking on other believers.
• Eph 5:18.  Wine leads to drunkenness. 
• 1 Tim 3:3, 1 Tim 3:8, and Titus 1:7. Leaders of the church should resist it.
• Titus 2:3.  Wine enslaves.
• Rom 13:13.  Drunkenness is not proper behavior for Christians.
• Gal 5:21.  Drunkenness "and such like," will keep Christians for going to heaven.
• 1 Pet 4:3.  Disciples of Jesus have given up this type of life.

Jesus wants me to have a good life in the here-and-now, and eternity too. 

So what is The Struggle? 

Is it how much it takes to be drunk, 'buzzed', or unsafe? Can I drink a small amount of alcohol and not effect someone else? Is drinking doing something for the good of others (like Jesus would do), or for selfish pleasure? Who gets hurt?

Why hurt?

 

Why "Red Letter Days"?

Why do we call them Red letter Days?

• One possible response: The day you get to Name It and Win It. Sounds like a rare special opportunity.
• Another response: The day you get to enter Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Sounds like a once-in-a-lifetime event, doesn't it.
• One of the unique Red Letter Days I found was a video of an ordinary bus driver and how his regular Dutch riders treated him on his birthday. Go check this one out. I don't know what they said, but their actions and his re-action 'translated' just fine.
• Or, as blogger Tom Davis reminds us, the phrase comes from how the Special religious holidays, on OLD calendars, were printed in RED. 

Any one of them could be a good illustration of a RED LETTER DAY, a day that was genuinely special to an individual, a day that changes life (or its direction) forever.

I think I had a Red Letter Day today. I had two major events happen today before lunch (and things didn't get smoother afterward either). Sorry, no details given.

It is just that these days are so rare they tend to shake us up. We try to get on with life, but  thoughts keep flashing through the old brain. Processing mundane activities become difficult, even frustrating.

And then I remember....

• He stopped an argument among the 'special 12' by washing feet -- A Red Letter Day.
• He told them he was about to die -- The same Red Letter Day.
• One of his 'special 12' turned him over to the authorities -- The same Red Letter Day.
• The other 11 abandoned him -- Yes, that same Red Letter Day.
• He was treated like a common criminal -- The same Red Letter Day.
• He had many people telling lies about him -- The same Red Letter Day.
• He was dragged through an illegal trial -- The same Red Letter Day.
• He was spit on, punched, slapped, mocked, ridiculed, and beaten within an inch of his life -- A big Red Letter Day.
• His clothes were the 'jackpot' as the soldier who crucified him naked 'cast lots' for them -- The same Red Letter Day.
• And then, on this Same Red Letter Day, he says, "Father, Forgive them. They have no idea what they are doing."

He did not survive His Red Letter Day. But that very Red Letter Day has deep meaning. It was the point in time my big mistakes against God were forgiven and atoned. A Red Letter Day with Red Letter Day size implications.

My day only had 2 things, and I feel like I'm just hanging on.

What is the matter with me? If I am His disciple, I must refocus! It is not about ME, it is about HIM. He accomplished so much good for others on his Red Letter day. What can I do with mine?

What should you do with your Red Letter days?
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Grandpa Joe

Justin looked at his last text before sending it. "Grandpa Joe is visiting & telling stories. Love it!" It looked good. He hit the 'send' button.

It's an understatement to say Justin loves his Grandpa Joe. And the stories Grandpa Joe tells are one-of-a-kind. He never lies. You know it is true by the twinkle in the old man's eye.

Last night Grandpa Joe talked about being a fan of The Man. He, and several others, enjoyed traveling with The Man everywhere. He did everything with Him and His 'official' support team.

Justin was trying to text his friend about the story Grandpa told last night. Grandpa Joe said he had been hanging around this hippie-looking guy named John for a while, and really liked what John was doing. Then The Man came by, talked to John, and John gave him his now-famous washing. John started talking about how The Man was more important. "So I became The Man Fan," Grandpa Joe said.

The Man was so different. "I loved everything he said and did, " Grandpa said, adding, "It was exciting to be at the beginning of a new 'superstar.'"

"He talked about chasing The Man for three years," Justin typed, checked and sent.

Then Justin wondered if he should text anything about the next story Grandpa told. How can anyone, even The Man, feed so many with so little? Justin fought to believe it. But Grandpa did have that convincing twinkle in his eye again. It had to be the truth.  "Grandpa said The Man feed a whole town with just a basket of food," he spelled one letter at a time. Check. Send.

Then Grandpa Joe told the story of when he was nearly chosen to be a replacement on The Man's support team. One of the support team, sometimes called 'Jud' for short, had turned The Man over to some powerful politicians, or religious freaks, or something. Jud's actions got The Man in trouble. Jud committed suicide.

Justin pecked "1 of The Man's helpers got Him n trouble. Helper killed himself." Check. Send.

Justin thought of what Grandpa said next. "A couple of weeks later a bunch of us was hanging around when Pete proposed me and Matt as replacements. They talked to The Man's father and rolled the dice. Matt was picked, " Grandpa said, adding with laughter, "Almost!"

Justin's fingers couldn't move fast enough. "Grandpa almost picked as replacement." Check. Send.

This Bible-based fictitious story asks us to decide if the stories about The Man are real. For me it depends on who is telling the story. The closest men surrounding The Man didn't lie back then. How do I know? Many of them died for what they said. Who would die for a lie?

Hey, just for fun, in the comment box type Grandpa Joe's full name. You can find help here.

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