The Enlightening Side Of The Moon

The skeptic might say that it's just a coincidence that during some eclipses, the moon perfectly and exactly covers the sun. The Christian knows that God put the sun 400 times farther from us than the moon, and made it 400 times larger than the moon, so that they would be the same size from our perspective. Because God made the sun and the moon for mankind.

Skeptic, how do you explain the perfect match of the sun's and the moon's size from our perspective?
It's obvious to me that God made them that way
--to light the earth just right
--to help us study the sun during eclipses, and
--to illustrate the truth that as God gives perfect light, his Church ought to reflect his light to those who don't see him.

Good Movies

Adam Sandler has never made a good movie.
Neither have Cameron Diaz, Chris Rock, Jennifer Aniston, George Clooney, or Brad Pitt.

You & I might disagree here, but let me explain. I define "good movie" as clean as well as entertaining. In fact, if it's not clean, it won't entertain me. When I hear my wonderful Lord's name treated like a swear word, or see an ungodly sexual situation, or some other uncleanness, I feel deeply grieved, or angry, or dirty.

What I wrote in my first paragraph doesn't mean there's no hope for these actors. I would've said the same thing, for example, about Eddie Murphy some years ago. But in the latter part of his career he's made Meet Dave, Daddy Day Care, & Imagine That--all excellent, funny flicks.

"How can I find out whether a movie is 'good' before I spend the money at the theater or DVD store?" I'm glad you asked. Go here before you go there:
http://www.pluggedin.com/movies.aspx

Spiritual Warfare Is Real--Here's Proof!

I have a Facebook friend who I was pretty close to several years ago, but I haven't seen him since then. He was a disciple, zealous for the Lord. But I don't see any hint of that great faith in his posts or in his page. Out of love and concern for him, I wrote this to him to remind him of how God used him in a powerful way in my life:

There have been two times in my life when God has miraculously, instantaneously, no-natural-way-to-explain-

it healed me. One was about 20 yrs ago when I had TMJ (it was painful to try to close my jaw, and I was living on soft food for days). I went to the dentist, and he told me I needed surgery. He said to go out to the foyer and make an appointment. I went out and stood in line. But then God spoke to me and told me to leave--he would heal me! I got happy and started to go home, but I felt I ought to go to the church building. I did, and you were the only one there. I told you what happened. You prayed for me, and one side of my mouth closed for the first time in many days! You prayed again, and the other side closed, and I have been healed with no problems ever since! Thank you!

I wrote this four days ago. In the past four days, the symptoms that had been gone for 20 years have slowly returned! My jaw is as bad now as when I went to the dentist. Because this is certainly a spiritual issue, I'm not going to the dentist...especially since I ain't got dental insurance! I'm trusting God to heal me again.
To those who pray, would you pray for me? And please pray for my friend, too.


UPDATE, 6/22: There's good news: Thanks in part to your prayers, I'm totally healed! It's definitely a miracle!

My cat's dull, safe life

I enjoy the time of year when we can leave open our front and rear doors and let the cool early-morning breeze flow through the screen doors. It's Pasko the cat's very favorite season. He loves spotting a sparrow on the patio, slinking towards it with the greatest of stealth, and...stopping at the screen door. Eventually the bird will leave, and eventually Pasko will hear another flutter of wings, this time on the front porch. Once again, stealth, and stop, and stare through the screen. He never goes outside; he doesn't even try to. Perhaps that's because he's neutered.
They say indoor cats live longer, but I think it's a boring existence compared to the felines that are free to frolic wherever they want. Those cats actually hunt, and occasionally even get to taste fresh meat. All Pasko ever eats is dry cat food. Besides chasing birds, mice, and lizards, outdoor cats socialize, fight, tease dogs, mate, and raise kittens. They do what they were designed to do.

There are also screens that people peer through. In fact, most people have much in common with Pasko. Rather than living an abundant life of adventure and taking risks for God, they satisfy their craving for excitement by sitting and staring through TV screens for hours on end, watching others having fun, taking risks, and doing good. Rather than cultivating real-life red-hot romances with their spouses, some folks stare through their computer screens at too-perfect-to-be-real images of fantasy "lovers" who don't care about them one bit. And they wonder why, when it comes to their own spouses, they're practically neutered.

How does one actually get a life, rather than live vicariously through actors on the other side of a screen? William Carey--the founder of the modern missionary movement--said, "Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God." William Shedd--missionary to Iraq 100 years ago--adds, "A ship in the harbor is safe, but that's not what ships are built for." I think it's more exciting to go on a mission trip, or give more than you can afford, or preach the Gospel in public, than to partake of the fake Hollywood stuff, or roller coasters, or bungee jumping. The Lord designed each of us with an appetite for adrenaline rushes, with some obviously craving it more often than others. But God wants each of us to get a regular "fix" by stepping out by faith in whatever adventure or risk He leads us into. That way, we'll be building our faith and accomplishing some good while getting a buzz. That's what you were built for.

Am I advising you to give up your TVs? Not necessarily, but I've lived a rich full life without one for almost all of the last 28 years.

Learning To Hear The Holy Spirit's Voice

In an earlier post I've written about God's dealings with me about a calling to missionary work in the Philippines. The Lord has been kind enough to provide more guidance in recent weeks, which I want to record for your edification...and mine (I get blessed every time I revisit these events).

I met with the missions pastor at my church, and he suggested that I take the Pathways To Global Understanding course. I had heard from several saints how this course changed their lives, and it is changing mine. Any American who has an interest in reaching the nations with the gospel should take this course (the class is only available in the USA). Therefore, every American Christian should take it. It is inconceivable to me how one can be a Christian yet have no interest in reaching the nations.

During the third weekly class, at break time I was waiting for a chance to ask the teacher something. The facilitators had been instructing us about an assignment in which we should come up with a strategy for reaching an unreached people group for Jesus. While I was waiting, I remembered that challenge and quickly said to myself, "That's easy. My wife and I will adopt five or six Filipino orphans and teach them to love Muslims. Some of them will go to Muslim nations, and some will reach Muslims in the Philippines." Though I've long been aware of the strategic benefit of sending Filipinos rather than White Americans to reach Muslim nations, we had never even considered doing what popped into my mind! As I wondered why on Earth did I think such a thing, I felt the Spirit of God all over me, and I started to weep. I never did get to ask the teacher my question.

I thank God for my dear wife Gina. Every time I tell her that I believe God is asking us to do something, she happily agrees that we should do it. Mahal kita, B.W.E!*

A couple of weeks later, the speaker was teaching us about the desperate lack of missionaries in the Muslim world. My eyes fell on the notes he had prepared for us, focusing on a quote that has long been my favorite: "A ship in the harbor is safe, but that's not what ships are made for." (William Shedd, missionary to Iraq) Gina and I had been asking the Lord for guidance about exactly where in the Philippines we ought to live. As I read Shedd's words about safety vs. duty, the thought occurred to me, "How can I raise my kids to reach Muslims if we're afraid to live near one of the Muslim areas of the Philippines?" It seems that every time God really speaks to me I cry (because I'm overwhelmed with joy & gratitude), and this time was no exception. Again, thank God for a wife who wants to be in the center of God's will. She had been hoping we would live in the far north of the Philippines, where her family lives. The Muslim areas are in the south. Gina agreed that we ought to obey God.

I think the most important thing about hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit is obedience. If you aren't willing to do what he says, why should he speak to you?

*Mahal kita means "I love you" in Tagalog, and B.W.E. is one of my pet names for Gina. It means best wife ever.

Disappointment, Or His Appointment?

I've been learning that interruptions and disappointments can be God's way of getting our attention, of changing our plans. Here's a glorious example:

In 1806, while attending Williams College in Massachusetts, Samuel Mills and some other students would gather for prayer every week. Afterward, they all set off for home. Mills and four others were traveling homeward together when a sudden downpour struck. The men sought shelter in a haystack by the road. If they had been like many of us, they would have sat there whining and worrying about the waste of time. But they simply resumed the prayer meeting. It was then that the Lord revealed himself and his will to them in such a powerful way that all of them dedicated their lives to missionary endeavors on the spot. And they lived out that commitment. This was at a time when almost no one from the US was serving as missionaries.

As a result of the now-famous "Haystack Prayer Meeting," the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions was born, the very first American missions agency.

Incidentally, Mills' mother had dedicated him to the Lord as an infant to be a missionary. Again, at a time when very few Americans were doing this. Her prayer was wonderfully answered.

The Religious Right vs. The Religious and The Right

I'm encountering increasing opposition to faith-informed political involvement from my brethren in the Church as well as from libertarians on the Right side of the political spectrum.

To my brethren, I would point out that God's people being involved in secular politics has a long and distinguished history. Is there any doubt that God himself made Joseph the Prime Minister of Egypt? Were not Nehemiah and Daniel political figures? Was George Whitfield neglecting his preaching when he led the labor reform movement in Great Britain? Should William Wilberforce have become a preacher rather than remain in Britain's Parliament after his conversion to Christianity? If he had, the British slave trade would have thrived for decades longer. Should the 19th century missionaries to India have concerned themselves with evangelism only? If they had not become politically active, many hundreds more widows would have been burned along with their deceased husbands. Today, prison reforms, anti-slavery movements, and other human rights causes have been led by Christians around the world, not to mention the efforts to curtail the slaughter of unborn children. Are the saints wasting their time in these efforts?

To my irreligious friends on the Right, can you really win elections by continuing to alienate social conservatives? Will accepting abortion-on-demand and embracing (or ignoring) the homosexual agenda serve to rally the millions of conservative churchgoers to the polls? Do not the founding documents of this Republic, documents which you claim to adhere to, honor our Creator as the source of the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of justice?

Genesis

Genesis has long been my favorite OT book, and I've been getting even more excited about it lately. For instance, I see now that when God kicked Adam and Eve out of the Garden, it was an act of mercy as well as of judgment. If they had eaten from the Tree of Life after disobeying the Lord, they would have been stuck in their sinful condition forever, just as the fallen angels. No hope of redemption. God prevented them from becoming immortal.
Why is it that many well-meaning Christians insist that all people are immortal? Doesn't the Bible refer to us as mortals? Doesn't it say that one receives eternal life only when one is converted to the faith of the Lord Jesus?
Hallelujah! Those who follow Jesus will one day eat from that Tree of Life.