A Letter To My Grandson

Dear Lincoln,

An acorn is a tiny little thing, its a nut to be more precise.  Now the little acorn goes and gets planted under the ground.  Its hard to believe that the little acorn will one day be an oak tree.  That’s right Lincoln, inside that little acorn is a mighty oak tree just waiting to come out.  Again it’s a hard thing to believe, but residing in that little nut is growth potential that’s phenomenal.

“A farmer went out to plant his seed. As he scattered it across his field, some seed fell on a footpath, where it was stepped on, and the birds ate it.    Other seed fell among rocks. It began to grow, but the plant soon wilted and died for lack of moisture.    Other seed fell among thorns that grew up with it and choked out the tender plants.    Still other seed fell on fertile soil. This seed grew and produced a crop that was a hundred times as much as had been planted!”  When he had said this, he called out,  “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”  Luke 8:8

My point today Lincoln is that as you grow up surround yourself with good people and follow the Lord, for inside you is growth potential that’s phenomenal.

I love you little man, Puppa

God’s Trademark Is Love

Designer clothes are known by their trademarks or designs.  You know if it’s a Tommy Hilfiger or a Ralph Lauren.  They have trademarks that make them very visible and very identifiable.  Those that hold an office of a unique kind can be identified by their attire.  You can know a doctor by his attire or a policeman by his attire or a judge by his attire.

God has sent forth something as irrefutable evidence that we are close to God – an irrefutable test by which you can measure your own spiritual growth.  In fact, so awesome is this trademark of God that He said it would be the major declaration of your faith.  Jesus put it this way.  He said, “By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, that you love one another.”

So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.    Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”  John 13:34-35

Owe nothing to anyone—except for your obligation to love one another. If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of God’s law.  Romans 13:8

This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another.  1 John 3:11

Believe in Your Heavenly Father

Evolution is the belief that nobody plus nothing equals everything.  But that’s not so.

Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Isaiah 64:8 And yet, O   lord , you are our Father. We are the clay, and you are the potter. We all are formed by your hand.

It’s quite natural for us to see a watch and assume that it has a watchmaker.  Evolution would have us believe that we could take the contents of the watch, throw them up in the air, and expect them to fall perfectly, and precisely in the correct order and positioning and automatically start ticking.

O  lord , our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth! Your glory is higher than the heavens. You have taught children and infants to tell of your strength, silencing your enemies and all who oppose you. When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers— the moon and the stars you set in place— what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them? Yet you made them only a little lower than God and crowned them with glory and honor. You gave them charge of everything you made, putting all things under their authority— the flocks and the herds and all the wild animals, the birds in the sky, the fish in the sea, and everything that swims the ocean currents. O  lord , our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth! Psalm 8:1-9

Lets say you walked into a quiet forest and stumbled upon a ball, the natural assumption would be that someone put it there.  You would be right to assume someone had been there before.  If you stumbled upon a very large ball, say like the size of a house, you’d assume that someone very big had to have put it there.  Now suppose that ball is the size of the planet Earth.  Then someone really big would have had to put it there!

For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.  Romans 1:20

The whole point is, if there is a design, there is a designer.  If there is a painting, there has to be an artist.  If there is a you, there is God.

for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see— such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him.  Colossians 1:16

Hosanna to Hallelujah

They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Blessed is the king of Israel!” – John 12:13

From ancient times Christians have brought palm branches home from church on Palm Sunday.  Some place them on the wall behind a cross or sacred picture.  Farmers would bury palm branches in the corners of their fields.
As time went on, many people added a twist to this tradition by weaving the palms into a cross, a picture frame, or a flower. Some of these were very elaborate, requiring considerable craftsmanship which was passed on in families from generation to generation.

The holiest week of the year begins today.  But the world doesn’t stop.  Everything goes on, all the regular TV programs, the regular work schedule, income taxes, all of our daily chores.  So…if I want this to be a “holy week” what do I do?  I decide.

I decide to start my day with prayer.

I decide to spend quiet time with God’s Word.

I decide to submit, in all relationships.

I decide to go from shouting Hosanna (save me) to singing Hallelujah (Praise the Lord)!

Most of all I decide to acknowledge that Jesus came to meet my needs, not my expectations.

When The Door Opens

A sick man turned to his doctor, as he was leaving the room after paying a visit, and said, “Doctor, I am afraid to die. Tell me what lies on the other side.” Very quietly the doctor said, “I don’t know.” “You don’t know?” the man said.

“You, a Christian man, do not know what is on the other side?”

The doctor was holding the handle of the door, on the other side of which came a sound of scratching and whining. As he opened the door, a dog sprang into the room and leaped on him with an eager show of gladness.

Turning to the patient, the doctor said, “Did you notice my dog? He’s never been in this room before. He didn’t know what was inside. He knew nothing except that his master was here, and when the door opened, he sprang in without fear.”

“I know little of what is on the other side of death,” the doctor continued, “but I do know one thing: I know my Master is there, and that is enough. And when the door opens, I shall pass through with no fear, but with gladness.”

 

John 14:2 In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?

40 Different Authors, 3 Continents, 3 Different Languages.

Among all the books ever written, the Bible is absolutely unique. Actually, it is not just a book—it’s 66 books. And one of its most remarkable qualities is the complete unity of the overall message despite having so many different authors writing over many centuries on hundreds of controversial subjects. Natural explanations fail to account for the supernatural character and origin of Scripture.

The Bible was written over a period of roughly 2,000 years by 40 different authors from three continents, who wrote in three different languages. These facts alone make the Bible one of a kind, but there are many more amazing details that defy natural explanation.

Shepherds, kings, scholars, fishermen, prophets, a military general, a cup-bearer, and a priest all penned portions of Scripture. They had different immediate purposes for writing, whether recording history, giving spiritual and moral instruction, or pronouncing judgment. They composed their works from palaces, prisons, the wilderness, and places of exile while writing history, laws, poetry, prophecy, and proverbs. In the process they laid bare their personal emotions, expressing anger, frustration, joy, and love.

Yet despite this marvelous array of topics and goals, the Bible displays a flawless internal consistency. It never contradicts itself or its common theme.

66 Books . . . 1 Message
Despite writing in radically different times and contexts, the Bible’s many authors all told the same message about God’s eternal plan, from Creation and the Flood to Christ’s work on the Cross and the consummation of God’s plan. You can find the same truths stated by Moses and the Old Testament prophets, Christ Himself, and Christ’s apostles.

The First Creation
“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” —Moses

“By God were all things made.” —the apostle John

“At the beginning God made them male and female.” —Jesus Christ

Noah’s Flood
“Noah went into the ark, and the waters increased greatly, and all flesh died that moved upon the earth.” —Moses

“The world that was then, being overflowed with water, perished.” —the apostle Peter

“Noah entered into the ark, and the flood came and took them all away.” —Jesus Christ

Resurrection of Christ
“You will not leave my soul in the grave; neither will you suffer your Holy One to see corruption.” —King David

“Christ was buried and rose again the third day.” —the apostle Paul

“Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” —Jesus Christ

The New Creation
“I will make a new heavens and a new earth, says the Lord.” —the prophet Isaiah

“I saw a new heaven and a new earth.” —the apostle John

“I go to prepare a place for you.” —Jesus Christ

The unity of Scripture demonstrates its supernatural inspiration. Only the one true, holy God could provide us with such a flawless Bible that reveals such a matchless message: the Lord’s staggering love for His creation.

As I’ve Aged

As I’ve aged, I’ve become kinder to myself, and less critical of myself.

I’ve become my own friend.

I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.

Whose business is it if I choose to read or write until 4AM?

I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60 &70’s, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love… I will.

I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the younger generaion. They, too, will get old.

I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And I always remember the important things.

Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody’s beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face. So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver.

As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think.

I don’t question myself anymore… I’ve even earned the right to be wrong.

So, to all those that wonder if age bothers me, I like being old. It has set me free. I like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall thank God every single day for His grace and love.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen”
Jeremiah 29:11-12