Good morning,
Praise the Lord for this fabulous Friday. Praise the Lord for Sunday that is coming. In the USA, this coming Sunday is celebrated as Fathers' day; it is a day appointed for honoring the fathers. We praise the Lord for our fathers. We pray for His anointing on all fathers. We read in Psalm 127 "Except the LORD build the house, they labor in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain."
Charles Swindoll, in his book, "Growing Deep in the Christian Life", tells the true story of a man who bought fried chicken dinners for himself and his girlfriend to enjoy on a picnic one afternoon. He was in for a surprise because the person behind the counter mistakenly gave him the wrong paper bag. Earlier, the manager had taken the money from the cash registers and placed it in an ordinary bag, hoping to disguise it on his way to the bank, but when the person working the cash register went to give the man his order, he grabbed the bag full of money instead of the bag full of chicken. Swindoll says, “After driving to their picnic site, the two of them sat down to enjoy some chicken. They discovered a whole lot more than chicken — over $800! But he was unusual. He quickly put the money back in the bag. They got back into the car and drove all the way back. Mr. Clean got out, walked in, and became an instant hero. By then, the manager was frantic. The guy with the bag of money looked the manager in the eye and said, ‘I want you to know I came by to get a couple of chicken dinners and wound up with all this money here.’ Well, the manager was thrilled to death. He said, ‘Let me call the newspaper. I’m gonna have your picture put in the local paper. You’re one of the most honest men I’ve ever heard of.’ To which the man quickly responded, ‘Oh, no. No, no, don’t do that!’ Then he leaned closer and whispered, ‘You see, the woman I’m with is not my wife. She’s, uh, somebody else’s wife.’” Swindoll closes the story by saying, “Harder to find than lost cash is a perfect heart.” Unfortunately, these stories are all too common in a culture which has lost its moral foundation. The decay of the culture is even having an impact on the Christian community. Two things are wrong: 1. We have failed to teach the basic tenets of the Christian faith in our homes. 2. We have failed to model the Christian faith in the world. The church itself has failed to clearly teach the fundamentals of the Christian faith and give clear definition to right and wrong. Instead, we have opted for vague notions about what it means to be nice, and made tolerance our defining doctrine. Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior,was ruthlessly clear and truthful. Whenever people confronted him, they were often stripped of their pretenses and made vulnerable by the truth with which he confronted them. Some of those individuals ran from the truth, others were staggered by it, and still others embraced it, difficult as it was. But people were always confronted by the truth. They had to face the truth about themselves and the reality of who Christ was. That was the case with the woman Jesus encountered by the well in Samaria, whom we read about in John 4. It teaches that when Jesus encounters us, the first thing that happens is that we are confronted with the truth about who we are. The truth this woman was forced to see was not very pleasant. She liked men, and if there had been a men’s magazine she would have posed for it. Her moral life was the joke of the community. She seemed to lack any moral sense, let alone an understanding of what was appropriate. She defended herself and discredited herself at the same time. There was always someone available to take advantage of her weakness. When Jesus offered her water from the well of living water, she didn’t understand what He was saying. She misunderstood Jesus meant when He said, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:13-14). She foolishly replied, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.” She thought that since Jesus was a stranger she could pretend to be someone she was not, but Jesus quickly unmasked her pretense by saying, “Go, call your husband and come back.” Now her disguise began to unravel, and her true self was laid bare. She said to Jesus, “I have no husband.” He said, “The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true” (John 4:18). Jesus knew the truth about her, and forced her to see and admit the truth about herself.
That is the way it is when we come into contact with Jesus, the Light of the world. Suddenly His light blazes on us and reveals the truth about us, and we understand that He sees us as we really are. When the real "us" is exposed by God, we have to admit the truth. Our natural tendency, however, is to cover up and conceal the truth. We hide the truth from ourselves and others. We put on our mask and go about our make-believe world. We play the pretender, just as the woman at the well did with Jesus. She presented another self to Jesus, the one she wanted him to see, and hid her true self. That is, she was incognito until He removed her mask by confronting her with the truth, and made it impossible to be an imposter any longer. What was just as unnerving was that when she realized Jesus saw the real her, she did not feel in any way condemned. Jesus saw through her facade. He knew all about her sin — and He loved her anyway. She felt his pure love for her because she was drawn to Him. If she had felt condemned by his words she would have left Him. But after she encountered Jesus, she went to the others in her town and said, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” (John 4:28-29). Jesus revealed the complete truth about her and completely accepted her at the same time. The saving factor in this woman’s life was that she did not deny the truth. If that had happened, it would have been the beginning of the end of her relationship with Jesus. Jesus will forgive our sin, but only if we face it and admit it. He will not tolerate our deceit. He will not allow us to play the imposter. The truth must be understood and owned, but it is through truth that we experience the love of God. We do not find God by pointing out our strengths, but by admitting our weaknesses.
Brennan Manning quotes Sister Barbara Fiand as saying, “Wholeness is brokenness owned and thereby healed.” Wholeness is not the absence of brokenness. Wholeness is facing the truth of our brokenness and finding healing in that act of honesty. Denial and dishonesty give sin its power. When we hide our sin and push it down, it exerts the most power itself in our lives. Admitting who we are and what we have done seems frightening, but in reality it is freeing. We are confronted with the truth about who He is.
When Jesus revealed the truth about her, this woman realized that He must have had some kind of supernatural ability. After only a brief conversation between them, it became clear that Jesus saw right through her. She assumed that He was a prophet or something, so she asked him a religious question. This is always a good technique for getting the spotlight off of yourself and onto something more comfortable, or even controversial. There had been a running argument between the Jews and Samaritans about where the real place of worship should be — on Mt. Zion, the mountain in Jerusalem where the temple had been built, or Mt. Gerizim, the sacred mountain in Samaria. The woman was trying to turn the spotlight off herself, but when she did, she encountered another truth that was just as difficult for her as the truth about herself — she came face to face with who Jesus really was. She wanted to argue religion, but Jesus wanted her to face reality. She learned that the great question of faith is not about mountains or doctrines, it is the truth about who Jesus Christ really is. Jesus said to her, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth” (John 4:21-24). What was this truth which Jesus spoke about? She was about to find out, and the truth would be shocking. She said to Jesus, “I know that Messiah (called Christ) is coming. When He comes, He will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, “I who speak to you am He” (John 4:25-26). This is so amazing because Jesus’ method of confronting this woman would be scorned in our day, when it is believed that no one is really right and no one is really wrong. We say, “Everyone has his own truth, and we should respect that by not trying to change the way he thinks or believes.” Our culture asserts that truth is whatever you sincerely believe in. Jesus did not affirm the woman’s error; He pointed her to the truth. He bluntly told her that the Samaritans were worshiping what they did not know. He told her that everything she had believed all her life had been wrong. He said, “Salvation is from the Jews.” She was uncomfortable and thought she would change the subject again. She came over to his side a bit, being familiar with Jewish beliefs, and said, “I know that Messiah is coming. When He comes He will explain everything to us.” Again, Jesus confronted her with a searing truth that began to burn its way into her brain. He said to her, “I who speak to you am He.” He clearly proclaimed that He was Himself the Messiah, the Son of God, the one promised in the Scriptures. She assumed that He was merely a prophet, but He proclaimed that He was the living God who had come to earth in human form to confront the world with the truth. Jesus was concerned about the false way this woman was living and the false way she was believing. He lovingly confronted her with the truth, and then let her decide what to do with it. When Jesus encounters us, we are confronted with the responsibility to act on the truth. We are almost surprised by this woman’s reaction. She had seemed silly and shallow, but when Jesus confronter her with the truth she responded to it, while many of the religious leaders rejected it. She had no education or religious training, yet she opened her heart to Jesus. It is interesting that the Bible says, “Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, ‘Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” (John 4:28-29). She left her water jar — either because she was so overtaken by what she had experienced that she forgot it, or she knew she was coming back. Either way, she left Jesus unceremoniously and without explanation, a woman on a mission. She determined to find other people and tell them about the truth she had discovered. She is honest now about all the things she has done, and tells the people in town that Jesus told her everything she ever did. She wants to tell others about the great Truth she has discovered. She wants to tell them about Jesus. Then the Bible says, “Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, ‘He told me everything I ever did.’ So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged Him to stay with them, and He stayed two days. Because of his words many more became believers. They said to the woman, ‘We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.’” (John 4:39-42). When these people were confronted with the truth, they responded to the truth. Winston Churchill once said, “Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing had happened.” How we respond to truth determines the direction of our lives. It will determine the quality of our lives and the destiny of our eternal soul. In the end, truth will triumph, for as Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn remarked, “One word of truth shall outweigh the whole world.” Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32). Let us not spend the entire summer in the pursuit of happiness, vain pleasure, leisure, and entertainment. Let us, on the other hand, seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and pursue holiness. Let us invest our energy and talents in serving, worshipping, and sowing seeds for the Kingdom. We become energized and galvanized by serving the Savior. May He provoke us to seek and serve Him.
In Jesus our Saviour and Lord,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmBCudTMQV8
Friday, June 13, 2008
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Brown's Daily Word 6-12-08
Good Morning,
Psalms 3 and 4 are two my favorite psalms. They are known as the Morning and Evening Psalms.
We can praise Him, that He is the lifter of our head even when we are downcast. At a time of great despair, distress, discouragement, and danger, David praised God with the words, "But You, O Lord, art a shield for me; my glory and the lifter of my head." (Psalm 3:3) No matter the severity of the adversity you may be passing through, the Lord is available to be your shield and the lifter of your downcast emotions. Be assured that no one is immune from adversity, hardship, or attack from our enemies. When we know that there will be opposition we can more effectively prepare for it in advance. Praise God that He is our lifter, our liberator, and the one who buoys our minds, hearts, and motivations. Praise God that He elevates us above our worries, fears, and short-sightedness. He alone has the power to work in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure. He buoys us up when we are tempted to give in to discouragement.
RESCUER - There are many times when we will need to be rescued. No one is exempt from feeling or experiencing discouraging times. David wrote, "The Lord is my refuge and strength; a very present help in the time of trouble. Therefore, I will not fear, though the mountains give way and they fall in to the heart of the sea. There is a river that makes glad the city of our God." (Psalm 46:1,2) David knew that even though Absalom, his son, was chasing him, and this fact caused great distress and shame. Yet God’s presence provided comfort, relief, and assurance of deliverance. The Lord’s presence enables us to realize that God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind (self-control). 2 Timothy 1:7 We need not fear the attacks of enemies because God surrounds us and protects us with His mighty shield. His presence becomes our glory, bringing His beauty, dignity, and majesty to remake our sense of worth. When our heads our bowed and we are overflowing with sadness, fear, and dismay, the Lord rushes to our rescue.
SHIELD - David praised God for being His protector from spiritual, social, verbal, emotional, political, and physical danger. We need the Lord’s protection; the help of man is often worthless. We must not think that we can lift ourselves out of our ruts by ourselves. Instead, we can worship and thank God for protecting and delivering us from all kinds of evil. Even Jesus prayed, "Lead us not in to temptation but deliver us from evil, for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever." (Matthew 6:6-9) We can honor the Lord for providing us with the shield of faith so that we can "quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one". (Ephesians 6:16-18)
GLORY - We can praise God that His very being consists of glory. David knew that the presence of God was so real that he could feel the filling up of his frazzled emotions with the bestowal of God’s glory, honor and dignity. It is a great assurance to know that the Lord bestows upon us His very glory during our most depressing times when it might appear we are up against an enemy that seems greater than our human ability to cope. Praise God that He endues us with His sense of honor, dignity, and joy in the midst of terrible adversity.
REST and RELAXATION, and RECUPERATION - God gave David rest, relief, and relaxation. David wrote, "I laid me down and slept and awaked; for the Lord sustained me." (Psalm 3:5) Praise God that He replenishes our soul, spirit, mind, body, emotions and motivations with His rest. So many people have a hard time recharging their batteries because they do not look to the Lord for rest. Many lack a sense of renewal, revival, and revitalization because they are not asking the Lord to help them lay down and rest in Him.
LIFTER - We can praise God that He lifts us above the circumstances, adversity and discouragements of the day. He has a way of taking us on to higher ground. He lovingly lifts us up so we can see Him. As we look in His face, we are comforted, encouraged and reassured by the fellowship of the Spirit, the consolation of His love, and His affection and compassion. He uses all kinds of means to lift us up if we will trust, obey, love, and worship Him with all our believing heart.
SUSTAINER - We can praise God that He provides us with what is necessary to keep us going when we think all of our energy is depleted. David wrote, "The Lord sustained me." You cannot sustain yourself; neither can other people provide you with what is needed to finish the race. He provides you with the emotional, mental, physical and spiritual sustenance to complete the tasks He assigns. "I cried unto the Lord with my voice and He heard me out of His holy hill." He truly is our glory and the lifter of our heads. He lifts us up so that our minds, eyes, and perspective can experience the overcoming of all our problems.
In Him,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axqXMuW8x1U&feature=related
Psalms 3 and 4 are two my favorite psalms. They are known as the Morning and Evening Psalms.
We can praise Him, that He is the lifter of our head even when we are downcast. At a time of great despair, distress, discouragement, and danger, David praised God with the words, "But You, O Lord, art a shield for me; my glory and the lifter of my head." (Psalm 3:3) No matter the severity of the adversity you may be passing through, the Lord is available to be your shield and the lifter of your downcast emotions. Be assured that no one is immune from adversity, hardship, or attack from our enemies. When we know that there will be opposition we can more effectively prepare for it in advance. Praise God that He is our lifter, our liberator, and the one who buoys our minds, hearts, and motivations. Praise God that He elevates us above our worries, fears, and short-sightedness. He alone has the power to work in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure. He buoys us up when we are tempted to give in to discouragement.
RESCUER - There are many times when we will need to be rescued. No one is exempt from feeling or experiencing discouraging times. David wrote, "The Lord is my refuge and strength; a very present help in the time of trouble. Therefore, I will not fear, though the mountains give way and they fall in to the heart of the sea. There is a river that makes glad the city of our God." (Psalm 46:1,2) David knew that even though Absalom, his son, was chasing him, and this fact caused great distress and shame. Yet God’s presence provided comfort, relief, and assurance of deliverance. The Lord’s presence enables us to realize that God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind (self-control). 2 Timothy 1:7 We need not fear the attacks of enemies because God surrounds us and protects us with His mighty shield. His presence becomes our glory, bringing His beauty, dignity, and majesty to remake our sense of worth. When our heads our bowed and we are overflowing with sadness, fear, and dismay, the Lord rushes to our rescue.
SHIELD - David praised God for being His protector from spiritual, social, verbal, emotional, political, and physical danger. We need the Lord’s protection; the help of man is often worthless. We must not think that we can lift ourselves out of our ruts by ourselves. Instead, we can worship and thank God for protecting and delivering us from all kinds of evil. Even Jesus prayed, "Lead us not in to temptation but deliver us from evil, for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever." (Matthew 6:6-9) We can honor the Lord for providing us with the shield of faith so that we can "quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one". (Ephesians 6:16-18)
GLORY - We can praise God that His very being consists of glory. David knew that the presence of God was so real that he could feel the filling up of his frazzled emotions with the bestowal of God’s glory, honor and dignity. It is a great assurance to know that the Lord bestows upon us His very glory during our most depressing times when it might appear we are up against an enemy that seems greater than our human ability to cope. Praise God that He endues us with His sense of honor, dignity, and joy in the midst of terrible adversity.
REST and RELAXATION, and RECUPERATION - God gave David rest, relief, and relaxation. David wrote, "I laid me down and slept and awaked; for the Lord sustained me." (Psalm 3:5) Praise God that He replenishes our soul, spirit, mind, body, emotions and motivations with His rest. So many people have a hard time recharging their batteries because they do not look to the Lord for rest. Many lack a sense of renewal, revival, and revitalization because they are not asking the Lord to help them lay down and rest in Him.
LIFTER - We can praise God that He lifts us above the circumstances, adversity and discouragements of the day. He has a way of taking us on to higher ground. He lovingly lifts us up so we can see Him. As we look in His face, we are comforted, encouraged and reassured by the fellowship of the Spirit, the consolation of His love, and His affection and compassion. He uses all kinds of means to lift us up if we will trust, obey, love, and worship Him with all our believing heart.
SUSTAINER - We can praise God that He provides us with what is necessary to keep us going when we think all of our energy is depleted. David wrote, "The Lord sustained me." You cannot sustain yourself; neither can other people provide you with what is needed to finish the race. He provides you with the emotional, mental, physical and spiritual sustenance to complete the tasks He assigns. "I cried unto the Lord with my voice and He heard me out of His holy hill." He truly is our glory and the lifter of our heads. He lifts us up so that our minds, eyes, and perspective can experience the overcoming of all our problems.
In Him,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axqXMuW8x1U&feature=related
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Brown's Daily Word 6-11-08
Good Morning,
Praise the Lord, for this good day which is a gift from the Lord. It has been hotter here in New York than in Oklahoma. Thank you for praying for Jerry Adams,
who came through the surgery well yesterday. Some of us from the church drove up to Rochester to be with the family. We were blessed. Deborah And Mike are still waiting for Cassidy to be born. Cassidy might make her debut today? Praise Jesus for all His little lambs of His keeping.
The short term mission team is leaving for India this coming Monday the 16th of June. Two are coming from Broken Arrow, OK, four are coming from Washington, DC. We will be meeting all in London and flying to Calcutta on British Air and then take a connecting flight to Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Orissa. We will use ground transport to travel to G.Udayagiri, a 4-6 hour drive depending on the cattle traffic on the back roads. Muklingia, the village where I was born, is located approximately 7000 feet above the sea level. We are located just 50 miles, as the crow flies, from the beaches of the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean. The total number in this team will be 17 adults and children. Most will be staying in the house where my mom lives. It is an experience, and an experiment in communal living. It is an adventure.
Oswald Chambers said, “It is inbred in us that we have to do exceptional things for God: but we have not. We have to be exceptional in the ordinary things.” Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “If a man is called to be a street sweeper he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, ’There lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.'” Heroes come in ordinary packages. The widow who gave two mites was a hero. The boy who gave five fish and two loaves was a hero. The woman who anointed Jesus with the alabaster jar of perfume was a hero. Hebrews 10:24 says, “Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” Each of us has a unique circle of relationships and what we need to recognize is that God brings different people into ours for different reasons. Our network of relationships is anything but happenstance. God wants us to share our faith and share our life with the people in our circle. He wants us to "slingshot" people on their spiritual journeys into eternity with Him. Here’s the catch. . . It doesn’t just happen! We have to fulfill God's plan for us.
Hebrews 10:24 says, “Let us consider.” In other words, we need a plan. We must be intentional. Try this challenge. . . identity one person this week and say something or do something to spur them on. Then keep doing it until it becomes part of the rhythm of your life. There is a principle in Philippians 4:8 that will absolutely revolutionize our lives if we put it into practice. “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” Joshua 24:15 says, “Choose you this day whom you will serve.” We can choose our own path, or we can choose to follow Christ. When we enter Christ’s orbit, it will take us to places we never dreamed of. WOW!
In the name of Jesus Christ, the Bright and Morning Star.
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXsiWoyjw60
Praise the Lord, for this good day which is a gift from the Lord. It has been hotter here in New York than in Oklahoma. Thank you for praying for Jerry Adams,
who came through the surgery well yesterday. Some of us from the church drove up to Rochester to be with the family. We were blessed. Deborah And Mike are still waiting for Cassidy to be born. Cassidy might make her debut today? Praise Jesus for all His little lambs of His keeping.
The short term mission team is leaving for India this coming Monday the 16th of June. Two are coming from Broken Arrow, OK, four are coming from Washington, DC. We will be meeting all in London and flying to Calcutta on British Air and then take a connecting flight to Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Orissa. We will use ground transport to travel to G.Udayagiri, a 4-6 hour drive depending on the cattle traffic on the back roads. Muklingia, the village where I was born, is located approximately 7000 feet above the sea level. We are located just 50 miles, as the crow flies, from the beaches of the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean. The total number in this team will be 17 adults and children. Most will be staying in the house where my mom lives. It is an experience, and an experiment in communal living. It is an adventure.
Oswald Chambers said, “It is inbred in us that we have to do exceptional things for God: but we have not. We have to be exceptional in the ordinary things.” Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “If a man is called to be a street sweeper he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, ’There lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.'” Heroes come in ordinary packages. The widow who gave two mites was a hero. The boy who gave five fish and two loaves was a hero. The woman who anointed Jesus with the alabaster jar of perfume was a hero. Hebrews 10:24 says, “Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” Each of us has a unique circle of relationships and what we need to recognize is that God brings different people into ours for different reasons. Our network of relationships is anything but happenstance. God wants us to share our faith and share our life with the people in our circle. He wants us to "slingshot" people on their spiritual journeys into eternity with Him. Here’s the catch. . . It doesn’t just happen! We have to fulfill God's plan for us.
Hebrews 10:24 says, “Let us consider.” In other words, we need a plan. We must be intentional. Try this challenge. . . identity one person this week and say something or do something to spur them on. Then keep doing it until it becomes part of the rhythm of your life. There is a principle in Philippians 4:8 that will absolutely revolutionize our lives if we put it into practice. “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” Joshua 24:15 says, “Choose you this day whom you will serve.” We can choose our own path, or we can choose to follow Christ. When we enter Christ’s orbit, it will take us to places we never dreamed of. WOW!
In the name of Jesus Christ, the Bright and Morning Star.
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXsiWoyjw60
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Brown's Daily Word 6-10-08
Praise the Lord for this glorious day. Yesterday the mercury climbed to 100 in some areas here in New York. It broke the record for June 9. It will be another scorching day today. Praise the Lord for His faithfulness. In our times of prayer and praise, let us remember to intercede for those with whom we are linked in this life. Please remember Jerry Adams in prayer, as he is going in for surgery in Rochester, New York today. Deborah and Mike are going to welcome their first born daughter Cassidy today. We praise the Lord for His gifts of love and mercy. In a world of sadness and bad news we proclaim the Great Good News, that Jesus is Lord. "The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ".
I read a heart warming story some time ago, set in the country of Armenia. In 1988 Samuel and Danielle sent their young son, Armand, off to school. Samuel squatted before his son and looked him in the eye. “Have a good day at school, and remember, no matter what, I’ll always be there for you.” They hugged and the boy ran off to school. Hours later, a powerful earthquake rocked the area. In the midst of the pandemonium, Samuel and Danielle tried to discover what happened to their son but they couldn’t get any information. The radio announced that there were thousands of casualties. Samuel then grabbed his coat and headed for the schoolyard. When he reached the area, what he saw brought tears to his eyes. Armand’s school was a pile of debris. Other parents were standing around crying, but Samuel found the place where Armand’s classroom used to be and began pulling a broken beam off the pile of rubble. He then grabbed a rock and put it to the side, and then grabbed another one. One of the parents who was looking on asked, “What are you doing?” “Digging for my son,” Samuel answered. The man then said, “You’re just going to make things worse! The building is unstable,” and tried to pull Samuel away from his work. Samuel set his jaw and kept working. As time wore on, one by one the other parents left. Then a firefighter tried to pull Samuel away from the rubble. Samuel looked at him and said, “Won’t you help me?” The firefighter left and Samuel kept digging. All through the night and into the next day, Samuel continued digging. Parents placed flowers and pictures of their children on the ruins, but Samuel just kept working. He picked up a beam and pushed it out of the way when he heard a faint cry. “Help! Help!” Samuel listened but didn’t hear anything again. Then he heard a muffled voice, “Papa?” Samuel began to dig furiously. Finally, he could see his son. “Come on out, son”, he said with relief. “No,” Armand said. “Let the other kids come out first because I know you’ll get me.” Child after child emerged until, finally, little Armand appeared. Samuel took him in his arms and Armand said, “I told the other kids not to worry because you told me that you’d always be there for me!” Fourteen children were saved that day because one father was faithful. How much more faithful is our heavenly Father! Whether we are trapped by fallen debris or ensnared by life’s hardships and struggles, we are never cut off from God’s faithfulness. He is true to His character. He is reliable and trustworthy and can always be counted on. Here’s a simple definition, “God’s faithfulness means that everything He says and does is certain.” He is 100% reliable, 100% of the time. He does not fail, forget, falter, change, or disappoint. He says what He means and means what He says, and therefore does everything He says He will do. Let’s look at some of the key passages on God’s Faithfulness:>Exodus 34:6, “The Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.”>Deuteronomy 7:9, “Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations…”>Deuteronomy 32:4, “He is the Rock, His works are perfect, and all His ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is He.”>Joshua 21:45, “Not one of all the Lord’s good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.”>Psalm 25:10, “All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful.”>Psalm 89:8, “O Lord God Almighty, who is like you? You are mighty, O Lord, and your faithfulness surrounds you.” These verses, when taken together, establish that God’s faithfulness is not some minor or secondary part of His character. To say that God is faithful goes to the very core of who He really is. If He didn’t keep His Word, He wouldn’t be God. The late Bill Bright, the founding President of Campus Crusade for Christ, compared the attributes of God to an automobile engine. Pistons, fan belts, water pumps, and thousands of moving parts all whirl around within a small space, making power for us to drive our car. The parts all work together harmoniously as components of the whole engine. That’s similar to the way God’s attributes function, too. If you took away love, God’s character would be incomplete. God’s love works with all the other attributes, like His justice, to produce the right kind of results. We can compare God’s faithfulness to the oil in the engine that keeps the internal parts running smoothly. God’s faithfulness means that each attribute in His character is working at full capacity at all times. When does God’s love fail? Never, because He is faithful. When is God less than holy? Never, because His character is pure and He is always faithful to who He is and to what He says. A.W. Tozer puts it this way, “All of God’s acts are consistent with all of His attributes. No attribute contradicts any other, but all harmonize and blend into each other in the infinite abyss of the Godhead.” God’s faithfulness is at the core of His very nature. He is knowable, holy, the creator, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, just, sovereign, unchanging, and loving because He is faithful to His own character. He never changes any of His attributes. Paul drew on this truth when he wrote to the Thessalonians, “the one who calls you is faithful and He will do it.” (1 Thessalonians 5:24)
Great is His Faithfulness,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqqtyuivolA
I read a heart warming story some time ago, set in the country of Armenia. In 1988 Samuel and Danielle sent their young son, Armand, off to school. Samuel squatted before his son and looked him in the eye. “Have a good day at school, and remember, no matter what, I’ll always be there for you.” They hugged and the boy ran off to school. Hours later, a powerful earthquake rocked the area. In the midst of the pandemonium, Samuel and Danielle tried to discover what happened to their son but they couldn’t get any information. The radio announced that there were thousands of casualties. Samuel then grabbed his coat and headed for the schoolyard. When he reached the area, what he saw brought tears to his eyes. Armand’s school was a pile of debris. Other parents were standing around crying, but Samuel found the place where Armand’s classroom used to be and began pulling a broken beam off the pile of rubble. He then grabbed a rock and put it to the side, and then grabbed another one. One of the parents who was looking on asked, “What are you doing?” “Digging for my son,” Samuel answered. The man then said, “You’re just going to make things worse! The building is unstable,” and tried to pull Samuel away from his work. Samuel set his jaw and kept working. As time wore on, one by one the other parents left. Then a firefighter tried to pull Samuel away from the rubble. Samuel looked at him and said, “Won’t you help me?” The firefighter left and Samuel kept digging. All through the night and into the next day, Samuel continued digging. Parents placed flowers and pictures of their children on the ruins, but Samuel just kept working. He picked up a beam and pushed it out of the way when he heard a faint cry. “Help! Help!” Samuel listened but didn’t hear anything again. Then he heard a muffled voice, “Papa?” Samuel began to dig furiously. Finally, he could see his son. “Come on out, son”, he said with relief. “No,” Armand said. “Let the other kids come out first because I know you’ll get me.” Child after child emerged until, finally, little Armand appeared. Samuel took him in his arms and Armand said, “I told the other kids not to worry because you told me that you’d always be there for me!” Fourteen children were saved that day because one father was faithful. How much more faithful is our heavenly Father! Whether we are trapped by fallen debris or ensnared by life’s hardships and struggles, we are never cut off from God’s faithfulness. He is true to His character. He is reliable and trustworthy and can always be counted on. Here’s a simple definition, “God’s faithfulness means that everything He says and does is certain.” He is 100% reliable, 100% of the time. He does not fail, forget, falter, change, or disappoint. He says what He means and means what He says, and therefore does everything He says He will do. Let’s look at some of the key passages on God’s Faithfulness:>Exodus 34:6, “The Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.”>Deuteronomy 7:9, “Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations…”>Deuteronomy 32:4, “He is the Rock, His works are perfect, and all His ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is He.”>Joshua 21:45, “Not one of all the Lord’s good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.”>Psalm 25:10, “All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful.”>Psalm 89:8, “O Lord God Almighty, who is like you? You are mighty, O Lord, and your faithfulness surrounds you.” These verses, when taken together, establish that God’s faithfulness is not some minor or secondary part of His character. To say that God is faithful goes to the very core of who He really is. If He didn’t keep His Word, He wouldn’t be God. The late Bill Bright, the founding President of Campus Crusade for Christ, compared the attributes of God to an automobile engine. Pistons, fan belts, water pumps, and thousands of moving parts all whirl around within a small space, making power for us to drive our car. The parts all work together harmoniously as components of the whole engine. That’s similar to the way God’s attributes function, too. If you took away love, God’s character would be incomplete. God’s love works with all the other attributes, like His justice, to produce the right kind of results. We can compare God’s faithfulness to the oil in the engine that keeps the internal parts running smoothly. God’s faithfulness means that each attribute in His character is working at full capacity at all times. When does God’s love fail? Never, because He is faithful. When is God less than holy? Never, because His character is pure and He is always faithful to who He is and to what He says. A.W. Tozer puts it this way, “All of God’s acts are consistent with all of His attributes. No attribute contradicts any other, but all harmonize and blend into each other in the infinite abyss of the Godhead.” God’s faithfulness is at the core of His very nature. He is knowable, holy, the creator, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, just, sovereign, unchanging, and loving because He is faithful to His own character. He never changes any of His attributes. Paul drew on this truth when he wrote to the Thessalonians, “the one who calls you is faithful and He will do it.” (1 Thessalonians 5:24)
Great is His Faithfulness,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqqtyuivolA
Monday, June 9, 2008
Brown's Daily Word 6-9-08
Good Morning,
We are in the midst of our first Pre-summer heat wave here in New York. It is similar to summer days in Orissa , India. It will be in mid 90's here today. The Lord blessed us with a wonderful weekend of great fellowship and worship. Our man's banquet was a time a great sharing in a sumptuous banquet and in participating a time worship, and in the proclamation of the word of the Lord by Bishop Simpson.
The reading from the Gospel for yesterday focused on Jesus' hand at work in the lives of many. A woman was healed of a 12 year-long illness. A child was raised from death. A synagogue leader experienced Christ face to face. There were so many miracles for one journey, but more than these outward took place, unseen to the eye but visible to the heart. Here, on the road to Jairus' house, we confront, once again, the matters of riches and poverty. We delve into the ever-troubling issue of suffering. Why do we suffer? Where is God in the midst of our trials? Jesus has the answers ready, if we will only listen. We explore, on this journey, the eternal truth of God's right time, in comparison with our faulty human conception of time. Jesus shows us God's right time in perfect action. All of these matters meet us on the road to Jairus' house, and demand our attention, our comprehension, our work.
Jairus, a synagogue leader, was a figure in society who carried some weight. As a leader, he was well-known, and well off. His opinion counted. Onlookers probably thought it only proper that Jesus would take time to attend to Jairus' daughter – after all, he was a religious leader. He deserved Jesus' help. On His journey to see the sick daughter, however, another figure entered the scene and stalled the trip for awhile. A woman, hemorrhaging for twelve years, also sought Jesus' help, though she was not confident enough to ask for it directly. The woman, unlike Jairus, completely lacked status. First, as a woman, she did not have the ability to command attention as Jairus could. Second, her disease made her ritually unclean, a state of being in Jewish code that made it unlawful for others to touch her. By touching Jesus, she risked violating the law herself and making Jesus unclean also. Third, where Jairus was well off, the woman, we are told, had spent her whole livelihood in search of a cure. She had nothing at all to recommend her to Jesus, no reason to believe he would care about her story. On our journey, we come upon the issues surrounding riches and poverty. Jesus treated the woman's suffering and pain in the same way he treated Jairus' pain, despite their contrasting financial states. No doubt Jairus was in a hurry to get aid to his dying daughter, but Jesus stopped the procession to care for the needs of the woman – needs Jesus deemed equally important. To Jesus it did not matter that one person was wealthy and the other one poor. The only thing Jesus attended to was the need that he can provide for, the life he could act to change.
How would we act in Jesus' situation? What would we do if we had to choose between stopping for the poor woman, or pressing on toward the home of the wealthy man? The gospel text itself shows us two responses of contrasting views. Peter, Jesus' closest disciple, urged Jesus to press ahead when Jesus asked who touched him. He says, "Master, the crowds surround you and press in on you". Peter's attention was on the goal of getting to Jairus' house, but he neglected the importance of the journey. Jairus, on the other hand, (amazingly) made no complaints. One might expect that Jairus would complain or hurry Jesus, considering the state of his daughter. Imagine if your loved one were ill and in need, but the ambulance stopped on the way to your house to quibble over a fender-bender. You might get anxious, nervous, or even angry. For Jairus the circumstance was magnified by the fact that the woman turns out to be an unclean woman. What a disgrace to Jairus, to be put off by such a person! Yet Jairus made no complaint. He waited patiently, not even arguing with Jesus when a messenger brought word that the daughter had died. Surely Jairus must have considered that if Jesus had neglected the poor woman, his daughter would still be living. He expressed no such sentiments, however, and followed Jesus trustingly.
A 12 year old is on the verge of death. A woman hemorrhages for 12 years. Parents watch anxiously over their only child. Is this fair? In this one passage we find deep and profound suffering. Where is God in this picture? Suffering is one of those questions we all face at one point or another in our lives. None of us can escape suffering. Perhaps we have lost a parent, a sibling, a spouse, a child. Perhaps we have suffered disease, or looked on as another battled an illness. Some starve. Some face war in their homeland. Some have homes destroyed from disaster. In one way, or many ways, we have all faced suffering in some form. Why? Why do we suffer? Does God care about our pain? As faithful Christians, we know that answer to be yes, even though it is hard to understand.
Jairus, his wife, his daughter, and the sick woman were all suffering, until they let their faith guide their actions to God. No doubt Jairus was hesitant about seeking help from a man who gave trouble to synagogue leaders. No doubt the woman feared acting against the law to trouble the great teacher. However, despite fears, they acted in faith, and their faith was rewarded by an end of their suffering. Jesus stopped on his journey to care for someone in need. In our hectic goal-oriented world, it is hard to think about stopping, pausing to attend to something other than our final destination. Jesus did not give it a second thought. The woman, we must remember, was healed without Jesus speaking a word or slowing his pace. But when he realized what had occurred, he still paused to attend to the woman, face to face. He heard her story. He looked into her eyes. He shared and relieved her suffering. Can we do the same? Karl Shelly,wrote, "The good news is that we as a people of faith are on the road to Jairus' house. The challenge, however, is whether we will be touched by people we pass along the way who are suffering". We have the challenge. Will we accept?
In the passage, we also confront the issue of time. In Christian theology, human time is called chronos, regular time. We are a culture, a world, obsessed with time. We are always in a hurry, seeking "fast food" and instant cures. Yet, we want to slow time in other areas of our lives. "Age-defying" makeup promises to remove outward signs of our growing older. Sometimes time moving forward is our enemy too. Either way, we are not happy with time. It goes by too quickly or takes too long.
God's time is different than our time. God has a perfect time, which, in theology, we call kairos. Kairos means the appointed time, the correct time, the "right" time. Interestingly, the word's roots are in no way related to the roots of chronos. Kairos is an understanding of time totally unrelated to human understanding of time. Think of God's time, God's kairos, at work . A woman is ill for twelve years, a long time by our standards to endure an illness. But on this day, she happened to be where Jesus was, and happened to cross paths with him. If she had been anywhere else in the world, she would not have been healed. God's kairos is at work – and the woman was healed at just the right time. Think of Jairus' daughter. At first, one is tempted to think Jesus was late. He spent too much time with the woman, and the little girl died. The child was twelve years old, only a short time for our standards of long life. But, despite our doubts, despite the laughter when Jesus claimed the girl was only sleeping, despite the wailing for the loss of life, Jesus acted to save the girl in God's right time. Instead of merely healing a sick girl, Jesus exhibited God's ability to work even through death to bring life, by allowing Jesus to raise the girl from the dead. What a powerful message that was, and it was one that Jesus would make even more clear through his own death and resurrection later on. The Lord acted in His right time, to bring a better message to the world.
We grow impatient from waiting for what we want to happen now, and we grow anxious when the days pass by too fast. But we must remember, our Lord works in His time, and the best things happen when we let Lord do His work.
On the road to Jairus' house, we have a lot to discover about who we are, and who the teacher and healer is with whom we travel. Are we ready to notice the suffering around us, on the sides of the road ? Are we ready to open ourselves to God' right time? We have a journey to take, side by side with our Lord and Master, on the road to Jairus' house.
In Him,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uNDVvQKOYw
We are in the midst of our first Pre-summer heat wave here in New York. It is similar to summer days in Orissa , India. It will be in mid 90's here today. The Lord blessed us with a wonderful weekend of great fellowship and worship. Our man's banquet was a time a great sharing in a sumptuous banquet and in participating a time worship, and in the proclamation of the word of the Lord by Bishop Simpson.
The reading from the Gospel for yesterday focused on Jesus' hand at work in the lives of many. A woman was healed of a 12 year-long illness. A child was raised from death. A synagogue leader experienced Christ face to face. There were so many miracles for one journey, but more than these outward took place, unseen to the eye but visible to the heart. Here, on the road to Jairus' house, we confront, once again, the matters of riches and poverty. We delve into the ever-troubling issue of suffering. Why do we suffer? Where is God in the midst of our trials? Jesus has the answers ready, if we will only listen. We explore, on this journey, the eternal truth of God's right time, in comparison with our faulty human conception of time. Jesus shows us God's right time in perfect action. All of these matters meet us on the road to Jairus' house, and demand our attention, our comprehension, our work.
Jairus, a synagogue leader, was a figure in society who carried some weight. As a leader, he was well-known, and well off. His opinion counted. Onlookers probably thought it only proper that Jesus would take time to attend to Jairus' daughter – after all, he was a religious leader. He deserved Jesus' help. On His journey to see the sick daughter, however, another figure entered the scene and stalled the trip for awhile. A woman, hemorrhaging for twelve years, also sought Jesus' help, though she was not confident enough to ask for it directly. The woman, unlike Jairus, completely lacked status. First, as a woman, she did not have the ability to command attention as Jairus could. Second, her disease made her ritually unclean, a state of being in Jewish code that made it unlawful for others to touch her. By touching Jesus, she risked violating the law herself and making Jesus unclean also. Third, where Jairus was well off, the woman, we are told, had spent her whole livelihood in search of a cure. She had nothing at all to recommend her to Jesus, no reason to believe he would care about her story. On our journey, we come upon the issues surrounding riches and poverty. Jesus treated the woman's suffering and pain in the same way he treated Jairus' pain, despite their contrasting financial states. No doubt Jairus was in a hurry to get aid to his dying daughter, but Jesus stopped the procession to care for the needs of the woman – needs Jesus deemed equally important. To Jesus it did not matter that one person was wealthy and the other one poor. The only thing Jesus attended to was the need that he can provide for, the life he could act to change.
How would we act in Jesus' situation? What would we do if we had to choose between stopping for the poor woman, or pressing on toward the home of the wealthy man? The gospel text itself shows us two responses of contrasting views. Peter, Jesus' closest disciple, urged Jesus to press ahead when Jesus asked who touched him. He says, "Master, the crowds surround you and press in on you". Peter's attention was on the goal of getting to Jairus' house, but he neglected the importance of the journey. Jairus, on the other hand, (amazingly) made no complaints. One might expect that Jairus would complain or hurry Jesus, considering the state of his daughter. Imagine if your loved one were ill and in need, but the ambulance stopped on the way to your house to quibble over a fender-bender. You might get anxious, nervous, or even angry. For Jairus the circumstance was magnified by the fact that the woman turns out to be an unclean woman. What a disgrace to Jairus, to be put off by such a person! Yet Jairus made no complaint. He waited patiently, not even arguing with Jesus when a messenger brought word that the daughter had died. Surely Jairus must have considered that if Jesus had neglected the poor woman, his daughter would still be living. He expressed no such sentiments, however, and followed Jesus trustingly.
A 12 year old is on the verge of death. A woman hemorrhages for 12 years. Parents watch anxiously over their only child. Is this fair? In this one passage we find deep and profound suffering. Where is God in this picture? Suffering is one of those questions we all face at one point or another in our lives. None of us can escape suffering. Perhaps we have lost a parent, a sibling, a spouse, a child. Perhaps we have suffered disease, or looked on as another battled an illness. Some starve. Some face war in their homeland. Some have homes destroyed from disaster. In one way, or many ways, we have all faced suffering in some form. Why? Why do we suffer? Does God care about our pain? As faithful Christians, we know that answer to be yes, even though it is hard to understand.
Jairus, his wife, his daughter, and the sick woman were all suffering, until they let their faith guide their actions to God. No doubt Jairus was hesitant about seeking help from a man who gave trouble to synagogue leaders. No doubt the woman feared acting against the law to trouble the great teacher. However, despite fears, they acted in faith, and their faith was rewarded by an end of their suffering. Jesus stopped on his journey to care for someone in need. In our hectic goal-oriented world, it is hard to think about stopping, pausing to attend to something other than our final destination. Jesus did not give it a second thought. The woman, we must remember, was healed without Jesus speaking a word or slowing his pace. But when he realized what had occurred, he still paused to attend to the woman, face to face. He heard her story. He looked into her eyes. He shared and relieved her suffering. Can we do the same? Karl Shelly,wrote, "The good news is that we as a people of faith are on the road to Jairus' house. The challenge, however, is whether we will be touched by people we pass along the way who are suffering". We have the challenge. Will we accept?
In the passage, we also confront the issue of time. In Christian theology, human time is called chronos, regular time. We are a culture, a world, obsessed with time. We are always in a hurry, seeking "fast food" and instant cures. Yet, we want to slow time in other areas of our lives. "Age-defying" makeup promises to remove outward signs of our growing older. Sometimes time moving forward is our enemy too. Either way, we are not happy with time. It goes by too quickly or takes too long.
God's time is different than our time. God has a perfect time, which, in theology, we call kairos. Kairos means the appointed time, the correct time, the "right" time. Interestingly, the word's roots are in no way related to the roots of chronos. Kairos is an understanding of time totally unrelated to human understanding of time. Think of God's time, God's kairos, at work . A woman is ill for twelve years, a long time by our standards to endure an illness. But on this day, she happened to be where Jesus was, and happened to cross paths with him. If she had been anywhere else in the world, she would not have been healed. God's kairos is at work – and the woman was healed at just the right time. Think of Jairus' daughter. At first, one is tempted to think Jesus was late. He spent too much time with the woman, and the little girl died. The child was twelve years old, only a short time for our standards of long life. But, despite our doubts, despite the laughter when Jesus claimed the girl was only sleeping, despite the wailing for the loss of life, Jesus acted to save the girl in God's right time. Instead of merely healing a sick girl, Jesus exhibited God's ability to work even through death to bring life, by allowing Jesus to raise the girl from the dead. What a powerful message that was, and it was one that Jesus would make even more clear through his own death and resurrection later on. The Lord acted in His right time, to bring a better message to the world.
We grow impatient from waiting for what we want to happen now, and we grow anxious when the days pass by too fast. But we must remember, our Lord works in His time, and the best things happen when we let Lord do His work.
On the road to Jairus' house, we have a lot to discover about who we are, and who the teacher and healer is with whom we travel. Are we ready to notice the suffering around us, on the sides of the road ? Are we ready to open ourselves to God' right time? We have a journey to take, side by side with our Lord and Master, on the road to Jairus' house.
In Him,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uNDVvQKOYw
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