Snap

When it comes to marriage, I believe in L-O-N-G engagements! Why? Because marriage is about commitment, not infatuation. LOVE IS A DECISION, not a just feeling. As with any decision, there are consequences and they make change over time, but in the giving of oneself to another it has been my experience that you receive far more than you give. It is only natural that from time to time, the male of the species may feel a little constrained (alright---trapped), but a family needs stability and that means control, which can be interpreted as being trapped. But, true freedom is an illusion, because even single men have to work, pay bills and all the other things it takes to be a responsible adult. While thinking about responsibility, this passage came to mind.

Genesis 3:1-16 WEB (R)
(1) Now the serpent was more subtle than any animal of the field which Yahweh God had made. He said to the woman, "Has God really said, 'You shall not eat of any tree of the garden?' "
(2) The woman said to the serpent, "Of the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat,
(3) but of the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat of it, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.' "
(4) The serpent said to the woman, "You won't surely die,
(5) for God knows that in the day you eat it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
(6) When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit, and ate; and she gave some to her husband with her, and he ate.
(7) The eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked. They sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
(8) They heard the voice of Yahweh God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of Yahweh God among the trees of the garden.
(9) Yahweh God called to the man, and said to him, "Where are you?"
(10) The man said, "I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself."
(11) God said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?"
(12) The man said, "The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate."
(13) Yahweh God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."
(14) Yahweh God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock, and above every animal of the field. On your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life.
(15) I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will bruise your head, and you will bruise his heel."
(16) To the woman he said, "I will greatly multiply your pain in childbirth. In pain you will bring forth children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you."

There were problems in the first marriage. Adam didn't think for himself and his wife was a little naive. But she was his wife and he her husband. The consequences of their actions had ramifications far beyond anything they could have even dreamed of. However, God put them together because it was better than being alone and I like to think that neither one is truly complete without the other. Is marriage a trap? I guess the answer most people give will depend if they are happy with their spouse or not. However, as far as I can see, you are OK just as long as you don't try to wiggle out of it... then snap...

A sense of humor

My daughter gave me this picture of a "Jackalope". Some say this is a mythical creature and others that it is a rabbit that has a disease; frankly, I could go either way on the subject. This particular one shares company with a lizard in a modified fish tank and the lizard hasn't said a word either way. So, its origins are open for discussion and I hope at least a few of you will research the topic. When I saw this picture today, I thought of the book of Genesis, in the place where Adam named all the animals.

Genesis 2:19-24 WEB (R)
(19) Out of the ground Yahweh God formed every animal of the field, and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. Whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.
(20) The man gave names to all livestock, and to the birds of the sky, and to every animal of the field; but for man there was not found a helper suitable for him.
(21) Yahweh God caused a deep sleep to fall on the man, and he slept; and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place.
(22) He made the rib, which Yahweh God had taken from the man, into a woman, and brought her to the man.
(23) The man said, "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. She will be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man."
(24) Therefore a man will leave his father and his mother, and will join with his wife, and they will be one flesh.

If you were expecting to see the Jackalope listed, dream on; its not there. But God did give man the right to call all creatures whatever he wanted, so I guess you can do what you want. There was one special one made for Adam, who was just right for him. And she has been ribbing him ever since. I know this to be true, because my wife has been kidding with me for many, many years. We never have discussed the Jackalope, though, so I guess her kidding days have a bright future. Who says God doesn't have a sense of humor????

Wheelchairs, rocket boosters and rules

It must have been a bureaucratic brain surgeon with an IQ just above that of retarded snail that came up with this wonderful idea. Perhaps there may be someone in the remotest parts of outer Mongolia than can explain this to me; I just don't get it!! Why do this? Everyone knows wheelchairs don't go vertical without an elevator! Trying to make something work that just will not work is stupidity. This bit of foolishness reminded me of a passage from the book of Colossians. See if you can spot the problem.....

Colossians 2:6-23 WEB (R)
(6) As therefore you received Christ Jesus, the Lord, walk in him,
(7) rooted and built up in him, and established in the faith, even as you were taught, abounding in it in thanksgiving.
(8) Be careful that you don't let anyone rob you through his philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the elements of the world, and not after Christ.
(9) For in him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily,
(10) and in him you are made full, who is the head of all principality and power;
(11) in whom you were also circumcised with a circumcision not made with hands, in the putting off of the body of the sins of the flesh, in the circumcision of Christ;
(12) having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead.
(13) You were dead through your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh. He made you alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses,
(14) wiping out the handwriting in ordinances which was against us; and he has taken it out of the way, nailing it to the cross;
(15) having stripped the principalities and the powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
(16) Let no man therefore judge you in eating, or in drinking, or with respect to a feast day or a new moon or a Sabbath day,
(17) which are a shadow of the things to come; but the body is Christ's.
(18) Let no one rob you of your prize by a voluntary humility and worshipping of the angels, dwelling in the things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
(19) and not holding firmly to the Head, from whom all the body, being supplied and knit together through the joints and ligaments, grows with God's growth.
(20) If you died with Christ from the elements of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to ordinances,
(21) "Don't handle, nor taste, nor touch"
(22) (all of which perish with use), according to the precepts and doctrines of men?
(23) Which things indeed appear like wisdom in self-imposed worship, and humility, and severity to the body; but aren't of any value against the indulgence of the flesh.

Christ, the son of God died to remove barriers like legal regulations that had separated God and man. So, why make more rules? Why do things that appear religious and have no useful value? Its like making safety hoops for vertical wheelchair use; it just makes NO SENSE! Unless, of course, there is a three stage rocket booster under, primed and ready to fire.

on the inside

This isn't some strange animal, but one that you have seen before. I put the way you normally see him (or her) at the bottom of the page to show you this is not some monster. This animal had an disease which caused all of its hair to fall out, creating this scary looking appearance. So, this is the way the animal looks on the inside. I wonder, what do PEOPLE look like on the inside? How many times have I thought I knew someone, only to have them do something so outrageous that I was amazed that they were capable of their actions. Yet, God knows us; beyond just what's under our skin, but right to the very heart of our being. Listen to the words of David to his son Solomon.

1 Chronicles 28:9 WEB (R)
(9) You, Solomon my son, know the God of your father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind; for Yahweh searches all hearts, and understands all the imaginations of the thoughts: if you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.

God knows everything about us and loves us anyway. Every thought, every action, every intention; from the very best to our most horrible, every single one. Which of course is why we must try our best to seek and to follow him. Any other course of action is very, very dangerous. Something to think about on this cold wintry night. By the way, look at the picture below to see the animal before it became sick.

What is it?

What is it? It looks like a cloud and it looks like a rainbow, but it is neither. If you find out, please tell me because I really would like to know. Until that time, I will continue to ask the first sentence again and again. If I never find out, that is OK too, because, well, I don't need to know everything. I will just have to learn to appreciate the beauty of the thing that God has provided and be thankful. Everything in life should be that simple; know what you can, learn what you don't and leave the rest to God. Too bad Israel didn't know that. Consider Exodus chapter 16 for example.

Exodus 16:1-35 WEB (R)
(1) They took their journey from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt.
(2) The whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron in the wilderness;
(3) and the children of Israel said to them, "We wish that we had died by the hand of Yahweh in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots, when we ate our fill of bread, for you have brought us out into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger."
(4) Then said Yahweh to Moses, "Behold, I will rain bread from the sky for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law, or not.
(5) It shall come to pass on the sixth day, that they shall prepare that which they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily."
(6) Moses and Aaron said to all the children of Israel, "At evening, then you shall know that Yahweh has brought you out from the land of Egypt;
(7) and in the morning, then you shall see the glory of Yahweh; because he hears your murmurings against Yahweh. Who are we, that you murmur against us?"
(8) Moses said, "Now Yahweh shall give you meat to eat in the evening, and in the morning bread to satisfy you; because Yahweh hears your murmurings which you murmur against him. And who are we? Your murmurings are not against us, but against Yahweh."
(9) Moses said to Aaron, "Tell all the congregation of the children of Israel, 'Come near before Yahweh, for he has heard your murmurings.' "
(10) It happened, as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of Yahweh appeared in the cloud.
(11) Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
(12) "I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel. Speak to them, saying, 'At evening you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread: and you shall know that I am Yahweh your God.' "
(13) It happened at evening that quail came up and covered the camp; and in the morning the dew lay around the camp.
(14) When the dew that lay had gone, behold, on the surface of the wilderness was a small round thing, small as the frost on the ground.
(15) When the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, "What is it?" For they didn't know what it was. Moses said to them, "It is the bread which Yahweh has given you to eat."
(16) This is the thing which Yahweh has commanded: "Gather of it everyone according to his eating; an omer a head, according to the number of your persons, you shall take it, every man for those who are in his tent."
(17) The children of Israel did so, and gathered some more, some less.
(18) When they measured it with an omer, he who gathered much had nothing over, and he who gathered little had no lack. They gathered every man according to his eating.
(19) Moses said to them, "Let no one leave of it until the morning."
(20) Notwithstanding they didn't listen to Moses, but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and became foul: and Moses was angry with them.
(21) They gathered it morning by morning, everyone according to his eating. When the sun grew hot, it melted.
(22) It happened that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each one, and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses.
(23) He said to them, "This is that which Yahweh has spoken, 'Tomorrow is a solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to Yahweh. Bake that which you want to bake, and boil that which you want to boil; and all that remains over lay up for yourselves to be kept until the morning.' "
(24) They laid it up until the morning, as Moses asked, and it didn't become foul, neither was there any worm in it.
(25) Moses said, "Eat that today, for today is a Sabbath to Yahweh. Today you shall not find it in the field.
(26) Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day is the Sabbath. In it there shall be none."
(27) It happened on the seventh day, that some of the people went out to gather, and they found none.
(28) Yahweh said to Moses, "How long do you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws?
(29) Behold, because Yahweh has given you the Sabbath, therefore he gives you on the sixth day the bread of two days. Everyone stay in his place. Let no one go out of his place on the seventh day."
(30) So the people rested on the seventh day.
(31) The house of Israel called its name Manna, and it was like coriander seed, white; and its taste was like wafers with honey.
(32) Moses said, "This is the thing which Yahweh has commanded, 'Let an omer-full of it be kept throughout your generations, that they may see the bread with which I fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you forth from the land of Egypt.' "
(33) Moses said to Aaron, "Take a pot, and put an omer-full of manna in it, and lay it up before Yahweh, to be kept throughout your generations."
(34) As Yahweh commanded Moses, so Aaron laid it up before the Testimony, to be kept.
(35) The children of Israel ate the manna forty years, until they came to an inhabited land. They ate the manna until they came to the borders of the land of Canaan.

What is it? Its a test. A test for them to see if they would keep the LAWS OF YAHWEH. For me, the rainbow-cloud is also a test, a test of humility to see if God will someday provide the answer. I wish Israel had listened and hope that I will learn to be patient until I am given the answer. This isn't going to be easy, I can see that already; I am an impatient sort of guy.

In the right light

You probably already know what this is, but I will tell you anyway; The moon. Seen in infrared, it changes from the silvery grey we have come to expect, to this magnificent montage of color. If this is your first time seeing the moon this way, you may have been a bit surprised. Life is like that; we think we know things and then suddenly something happens and we them in an entirely new light. Then everything changes. In thinking about this, an episode from the new testament came to mind. Read on, its a short passage and well worth the time.

Mat 8:23-27
(23) Jesus' disciples went with him as he left in a boat.
(24) Suddenly, a severe storm came across the sea. The waves were covering the boat. Yet, Jesus was sleeping.
(25) So they woke him up, saying, "Lord! Save us! We're going to die!"
(26) Jesus said to them, "Why do you cowards have so little faith?" Then he got up, gave an order to the wind and the sea, and the sea became very calm.
(27) The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this? Even the wind and the sea obey him!"

Jesus had just presented the sermon on the mount (chapter 7) and after that healed a few people, then this happens. Its amazing how focused your thoughts become if you think you are going to die. Suddenly, they saw Jesus in a new light; in a way that would begin to change their whole lives. Everything would be different, because here was a man who could control nature... and so, the question: "What kind of man is this?" Good question, but its not just for them, its for us as well. And perhaps it is the most important you will ever ask. Just be sure you are looking at him in the right light, with eyes of faith.

Larger than life

The world is full of curiosities and this is one of them. I have never seen anything like this before, except in the terminator movies. It seems to me it must be a round glass or steel mirror, but its real purpose is a mystery. What it does do, however, is to magnify its surroundings so that they seem more intense than they really are. Curiosities are like that; they really focus your attention, but sometimes they cause you to come to a wrong conclusion. Here is one example.

Acts 14:8-20 WEB (R)
(8) At Lystra a certain man sat, impotent in his feet, a cripple from his mother's womb, who never had walked.
(9) He was listening to Paul speaking, who, fastening eyes on him, and seeing that he had faith to be made whole,
(10) said with a loud voice, "Stand upright on your feet!" He leaped up and walked.
(11) When the multitude saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voice, saying in the language of Lycaonia, "The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!"
(12) They called Barnabas "Jupiter," and Paul "Mercury," because he was the chief speaker.
(13) The priest of Jupiter, whose temple was in front of their city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates, and would have made a sacrifice along with the multitudes.
(14) But when the apostles, Barnabas and Paul, heard of it, they tore their clothes, and sprang into the multitude, crying out,
(15) "Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and bring you good news, that you should turn from these vain things to the living God, who made the sky and the earth and the sea, and all that is in them;
(16) who in the generations gone by allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways.
(17) Yet he didn't leave himself without witness, in that he did good and gave you rains from the sky and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness."
(18) Even saying these things, they hardly stopped the multitudes from making a sacrifice to them.
(19) But some Jews from Antioch and Iconium came there, and having persuaded the multitudes, they stoned Paul, and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead.
(20) But as the disciples stood around him, he rose up, and entered into the city. On the next day he went out with Barnabas to Derbe.

The miracle of healing at Lystra caused the natives to come to the wrong conclusion about Barnabus and Paul. It took a bit of persuading, but eventually the multitude came to their senses and realized he was not a god. The Gospel was preached, but opposition arose and almost killed Paul. In one of the most courageous actions in Scripture, Paul goes back into the city that stoned him. I know he was not one of the "gods", but he sure was a larger than life hero. I wonder how he would look in the bubble mirror above? Humm, I wonder how I would look? No, I better not go there, mirrors tend to put ON WEIGHT!