Category: Christian

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In A Heartbeat

For reasons unknown to me, God thought a thought. The thought was to make a universe… so large that it has no boundaries. At a location of His choosing, He placed a sphere that would travel in space moving in a cosmic dance in step with the rest of the universe. He made the surface of this sphere according to a plan. He intended to place a being of His creation on the surface of the sphere. The being was designed to live and thrive in this place.

When this universe was prepared and the sphere was in its place and ready, God formed a likeness of Himself on the surface of the sphere out of the same material He used to create the universe. He blew one of His breaths into what He had formed. Something happened that had never happened before. There was a new sound in the universe. It was new note in this symphony He was creating. It was a beat. It was the first heartbeat. It echoed throughout the universe. This first beat was followed by a second. Then by a third. And so it began.

Soon after, this heartbeat was joined by another. And then another, until today the universe is filled with the sound of billions of heartbeats.

The sound of a new heartbeat is the sound of promise…the promise of a new life. If the heartbeat is allowed to continue to beat, the reason the first beat was heard can come into being. If the heartbeat is stopped, all the potential and purpose will be lost. God’s purpose for the first beat will be lost.

Every new heartbeat holds the potential for greatness. Each new heartbeat holds the potential for evil. How each heart is cared for by the one who holds the heartbeat within their chests and those around them determines which it will be. If a heartbeat is protected and loved, the possibilities for good are unlimited. A heartbeat that is not protected is always in danger both for the one whose chest holds the heartbeat and those around.

Just as every new heartbeat beats with the rhythm of promise and echoes through the universe, every heartbeat that stops means the end…the end of a life lived in harmony with other heartbeats or the end of a life lived out of rhythm. A heartbeat in harmony creates beauty and life. A heartbeat lived out of rhythm creates chaos, destruction and even the silencing of heartbeats.

Long ago, God gave something of Himself to a young woman. Not long after, another new heartbeat was heard. This one sounded different. This one had the potential for good and the promise of freedom for all heartbeats that chose to beat in harmony with it. This so threatened hearts that beat out of rhythm that they conspired together to stop this heartbeat. They succeeded in their intent to stop this heart from beating. They went so far as to thrust the point of a spear into this heart to make sure it would never beat again. They placed this silenced heart into a stone cave and sealed the entrance with a large round stone.

Three days later a sound could be heard coming from inside the cave. It was a heartbeat. They rolled the stone back and found the cave was empty. The sound of this heartbeat signaled freedom from death for everyone that believed the heartbeat was true.

When a life ends, a heartbeat stops. The universe becomes a little quieter. Those hearts that choose to beat in harmony with the heartbeat that escaped the cave go on forever. Those that choose to beat out of rhythm and harmony will be lost.

Guard your heart so it will beat in time with the symphony of God.

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We Serve at the Pleasure of the King

It is spring. “The season when kings go off to war.” Our king has sent us to capture a city and destroy a people. In this season, our king is not with us. He has chosen to remain in his palace and send us, his army, to fight without him. We serve at the pleasure of the king.
I serve under a commander I greatly respect. He has led us to victory to many times to count. When I was young and joined the kings army, my father had recently died and the commander became much more than a commander to me. I look up to him as a father and he considers me his son.
Three days ago my commander said He had a message from the King. To my surprise, he told me the message was for me. He said that the King had summoned me and I was ordered to go to the kings palace immediately. I gathered a few things and started to run. It was a days journey by foot to the palace. I arrived late in the evening. I approached the entrance to the palace and told the guard who I was and that the King had summoned me. He instructed two of his fellow guards to escort me to the king. They led me to a large room. They announced me. From behind a curtain appeared the king. All of us bowed and the King dismissed my escort. The king walked across the room and sat on a finely made sofa and motioned for me to sit beside him. He was a very impressive looking man, made more impressive by what I had witnessed him do in battle and the many stories I had heard regarding the many brave and heroic feats he had preformed over the years. I sat and looked at his face, but respectfully, I did not look directly into his eyes.

He asked me questions regarding how the war was going and how the men were doing. Then he said, ” I have a task for you, but it’s late and I’m tired. Go home tonight, get cleaned up and I will send for you in the morning”. Then he rose from the sofa, turned and left the room. Right after he left, the two guards that had escorted me earlier came in and escorted me out of the palace. When I got outside, I was about to start walking towards home when a thought came into my mind. I can’t go home. My commander and the army were out on the battle field. How could I go home and sleep comfortably knowing they were out there. I turned around and walked back to the entrance of the palace and asked one of the guards that was warming himself by a fire if it would be all right if I found a corner out of the way and rolled my mat out to spend the night. After giving me a puzzled look he gave me his permission. So I spent the night among the kings servants.
When morning came. I got up, rolled up my sleeping mat and looked around thinking about what I should do next. I saw one of my escorts from yesterday across the courtyard and walked over to him. When he saw me approaching he turned to me and asked, ” Where have you been? We went to your house this morning to bring you to the King. Your wife told us she hadn’t seen you and thought you were still with the army.” I told him I had slept here last night. After another puzzled look, he again escorted me to the King.
When we arrived at the room, he left me at the door and walked to the other side of the room where the King was standing. They spoke to each other for a short time and then the guard left the room. The king pointed to the same sofa we had sat on yesterday and we both sat down.

He asked me, where did you spend the night last night. I told him I slept in the entrance of the palace. He asked me why I would sleep there rather than go to my house to sleep. I told him the reason and he gave a quiet chuckle. Then he said to me, ” Don’t be concerned about that. No one would consider you spending a night at home with your family a betrayal to your comrades in the field. Tomorrow you will leave for the camp. I will have something for you to deliver to the commander. In the mean time, I am gathering with a few men on my staff tonight. I would like you to be there. Come back at sunset. Again, he left the room and my escorts came to show me out.
I spent the day at the market and with a longtime friend. He was surprised when he saw me, knowing I was away with the army. We speculated as to why the King had summoned me but came up with nothing.
Just before sunset, I returned to the palace and joined the gathering of men, trying to make conversation but finding it difficult. I felt out of place. For some reason, I started to feel like the goose that had been invited to dinner.
From the time I arrived, the servants started serving many different types of wine. All evening there were toasts to everything imaginable. The king seemed very insistent that I keep my glass empty so the servants could continuously fill it. It wasn’t very long before I discovered I was getting very drunk. When the evening came to an end, I think I remember my escorts having to carry me out of the palace.
I awoke in the middle of the night and found myself lying on the stoop in front of my house. I remembered what the King had said earlier in the day about not feeling I was betraying my friends, but I couldn’t get past the thought in my heart that I was. So I turned from the front door of my house and slowly made my way back to the entrance of the palace. There I found my sleeping mat where I had left it, rolled it out and went to sleep.
The next thing I remember is someone shaking me and talking very loud. My head was pounding and I had a hard time opening my eyes. When I did get them to open, the face of one of my escorts slowly came into focus. He was telling me to get up. I slowly got up and gathered my things. The guard watched me as I put myself together. In his hand was a sealed couriers bag. He handed it to me and instructed me to deliver the bag directly to my commander. He told me that this order came from the King and time was of the essence.
Without hesitation I started to run. I knew I could make it back to our camp before dark. The day went by without incident.
When I arrived at our camp I went straight to the commander’s tent. I announced my presence and he invited me in. He was standing over a table reviewing a map with three of his officers. He welcomed me back and offered me his hand in greeting. I acknowledged the other men and handed the bag to the commander. He took it from me and then returned his attention to the map. I quietly turned and left.
That night as I tried to sleep, my mind kept replaying the last few days trying to figure out what had happened and why the King had summoned me.
The next morning, the army prepared for the days battle. When we were ready, the commander stepped forward and announced that I would be given the honor of leading the charge. As we formed our ranks, I took the forward position. This must have been the message that I had delivered from the King. But why was I awarded this honor. I looked to see if I could find my commander. When I found him, he was looking straight at me. I was taken back by the look on his face. This man I love as a father had the shadow of fear on his face and what appeared to be tears in his eyes.
We heard the blast of the enemy’s battle call. We took our positions and started to advance towards the opposing army. I could see the force that was coming towards us was formidable. When the call to charge was given, I pressed forward and felt confident because of the honor given to me by the King and the commander.
Just before we were about to engage the enemy, I gazed to each side of me and then behind me to draw strength from my fellow warriors. But instead of drawing strength, I felt hopelessness and despair. For at that moment I discovered that I was completely alone. My commander and my fellow warriors had turned back and abandoned me to face the enemy alone. Almost immediately I felt the pain of two arrows piercing into my chest. I stumbled and fell to my knees.
I can feel the warmth of the sun on my face and I see it’s brilliant light shining off the sword that is whistling through the air on its straight and true path to cut off my head.
I believe these are the last words I will utter in this world,
” I serve at the pleasure of the King!”

2 Samuel 11 : 1 – 17

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Simply Human

Despite the differences in appearance, hair color…. eye color…. skin color…. male or female, we are all born the same. We are simply human.

Not a part of a group or tribe or color or anything else. Nothing that would distinguish us from any other human that has ever lived or will ever live. Anything that labels us was put there, by ourselves or someone else. The truest connection we all have is that we are all born lost. The only thing that really matters is will we remain lost.

We will all die.

After we are dead, we will all stand before God. Everyone. The place where we will stand will be flat and level. There will be no status or position or labels. We will all be the same.

We will all be asked one question. It will not be one of these;

What did you eat or what did you refrain from eating?

What did you touch or what did you avoid touching?

What did you do or what didn’t you do?

What group were you a part of?

The question that will be asked will be, “Did you believe Jesus?”

If the answer is yes, the reason it’s yes will not be because of anything done or not done during our life. Except for one thing. Did we believe Him and what He did?

There is a question that could be asked, but won’t be asked. “What evidence can be offered to prove your belief in Jesus?” If the question was asked, the answer would be “None.” But the question won’t be asked.

Evidence will not be presented. If evidence were to be allowed to be presented, it would not include eating this or not eating that, doing this good thing or doing that bad thing. It could include a life of loving God with everything. A life of loving others more than loving ourselves.

I believe that one of the gifts God gave everyone through Jesus was freedom and simplicity. In all my years of knowing Jesus, the truth is, for myself and many others I have met along the way, trying to figure out what God wants to say to me, “Me”, has been a challenge that kept me in a place of frustration and confusion for a long time.

Then I realized something. God’s desire and expectation for everyone is to know Him and His Son. He would not have made it hard to do this. He would not expect this of us and desire this of us and then hide. He gave us a book that we could hold in our hands and understand. He wanted to tell us where we have been, where we are now and where we are going.

I’m still somewhat puzzled about where we have been and why He did some of the things he did and the way he did them. I’m pretty clear on where we are now and I do know where I’m going.

For the where we came from, I just need to trust Him to help me understand the things that I need to understand.

For the where we are now, I’m thankful to Him for the Holy Spirit that speaks to my spirit the deep mysteries and the simple truths of living a life for God and for other people. And as for knowing where I’m going, I’m thankful to Jesus for providing the way and the assurance of it.

I do understand that God would have wanted us to have made different choices, starting with our first parents saying no to the serpents offer. But they said yes. And even though they said yes, God still loved us. He loved us enough to provide a way for all of us to be able to come to a point in our lives where we have the opportunity to choose Him over something else. The same offer our first parents were given. And we are free to make the choice.

God’s plan has always been the same, to win us back. To save us from making the wrong choice. The bible is the story of Him doing that. It is a story with many different parts that take place over thousands of years. Much of the story applies to me directly and much of it applies to me indirectly.

This is what the bible story is;

Once upon a time, God created everything. He created a man and a woman. The man and woman had the ability to make a choice. To choose between God or something else. They chose something else. That choice separated the man and woman from God. The man and woman were now lost. All their children would be born lost. But God wanted them back. So, He made a way back. It would take a long time and the journey would be costly. So costly, that it would mean the death of His Son. But God loved us so much, He was willing to pay the price. God’s willingness to do this gave every man the right to make the choice between God and something else. Everyone has the opportunity to make the choice. Hopefully a better choice than our first parents made.

During the journey from our first parents until this moment, God has been working at restoring us to Him. He separated groups of people from each other by language and color. He made rules for men to follow for protection and direction until they were no longer needed. He sent his Son to restore us to Himself. He sent us a counselor to show us how to love and live.

And he has prepared a perfect place for us to be with Him and each other forever.

What gives us the right to enter this place is not who we are or what we have or haven’t done or how much we had or didn’t have. The right is a gift freely given simply by loving God and His Son and living a life that shows it, and by loving others more than ourselves and living a life that shows it.

Everyone that tries to add extra requirements for entry into this perfect place are wasting their time. Everyone that tries to earn the right to enter by what they do or refrain from doing will remain lost forever without God.

That’s simply the Bibles story.

So, when God asks us the only question we will be asked to answer, what will our answer be?

Remember, it will be a yes or no question.

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STRICKEN WITH PARKINSON’S

The story is told that around 2000 years ago, four men had a friend that had a movement disorder. In the story, it was said the man was stricken with palsy.The four friends had heard of a man that could heal people was in town. An Old English version of the story describes what happens this way;

(And again, he entered into Capernaum after some days; and it was noised that he was in the house. And straightway many were gathered together, insomuch that there was no room to receive them, no, not so much as about the door: and he preached the word unto them. And they come unto him, bringing one sick of the palsy, which was borne of four. And when they could not come nigh unto him for the press, they uncovered the roof where he was: and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay.

When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.

But there were certain of the scribes sitting there, and reasoning in their hearts, Why doth this man thus speak blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God only?

And immediately when Jesus perceived in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, he said unto them, Why reason ye these things in your hearts? Whether is it easier to say to the sick of the palsy, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and take up thy bed, and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (he saith to the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way into thine house. And immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went forth before them all; insomuch that they were all amazed, and glorified God.)

 

These four friends decided to take their friend to this healing man so he would no longer have to live like this. They each grasped a corner of their friend’s bed, the bed he had been trapped in for so many years. They carried him to the house where this healing man was. But when they got there, so many people surrounded the house and were blocking the door that they couldn’t get close.

So, they decided the only way they could get their friend inside was to get on the roof and find a way in from there.

Meanwhile, Jesus was inside, talking and healing, when He noticed something falling from the ceiling. He looked up and discovered that someone was making a large hole in the roof. Soon He saw some men were lowering something down to him by ropes tied to the four corners. He stepped back to allow the object to rest on the floor. He saw there was a man on a bed. The man was obviously sick. Jesus looked up again and saw four men with hope shining from their faces looking down at Him through the hole they had just created.

Jesus then looked at the man on the bed. His entire body from his head to his feet was grossly contorted and continuously shaking. He placed His hand on the man’s shoulder. His hand followed the rhythm of the tremors. With compassion and love in His voice, Jesus told him, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

Now earlier, when Jesus had arrived at the house and all the people had surrounded the doorway, along came a group of the church leaders. The crowd parted to allow the leaders to enter the house. The moment Jesus told the man his sins were forgiven, the leaders looked at each other and thought to themselves, “He can’t say that! Only God can forgive sins.” Jesus knew what they were thinking. He turned to the leaders and asked them, “Which one is easier, to tell this poor man his sins are forgiven, or to tell him to get up and walk? I will show you that I have the power to do both.” With that, Jesus turned back to the man lying on the bed, His hand still moving in time with the tremors. He looked at him and said, ” Get up and pick up your bed and go home.” Immediately, Jesus hand and the man’s body became perfectly still. Jesus stepped back. Every eye was on the man on the bed. Slowly, he started to move, but these were not involuntary movements they had witnessed for so long. These were slow, deliberate movements. It was like watching the birth of a butterfly. As he got up, he transformed from a curled up, contorted, shaking figure into a normal man, standing straight and tall. He stood there for a moment or two, looking around at all the amazed faces, (except for the stone faces of the church leaders, who were obviously not sharing in everyone else’s joy). He looked up through the hole in the roof at his four friends. How could he ever thank them? Lastly, He looked over at Jesus. He couldn’t seem to find any words. Jesus just smiled and tilted His head to the side as if to say, “Go home.”

The man bent down, picked up his bed and left the house, a free man.

 

 

(The definition of palsy is: pal·sy

pôlzē/

noundated

  1. paralysis, especially that which is accompanied by involuntary tremors.

“a kind of palsy had seized him”

verb

  1. affect with paralysis and involuntary tremors.

“she feels as if the muscles on her face are palsied”)

 

In 1817, a London doctor named James Parkinson wrote a paper describing people that had difficulty with movement along with uncontrolled tremors. He named the condition, “The Shaky Palsy”. Soon after he published his article, it began to be called Parkinson’s disease.)

Re: Luke: 5: 17-26 (Bible)

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Open letter to God

Dear Father,

As You know, I have Parkinson’s disease. I don’t know when it hit me or where it came from. I don’t think I asked for it. Maybe I did and don’t realize that I did. I know I didn’t ask for it specifically. I could have done something that caused me to get it, either in the natural ,( getting exposed to something that caused me to get it or a genetic predisposition for it.) Maybe spiritual, (maybe it was caused by an act of disobedience that opened the door for me to get it.)

As You are well aware, I have sinned from time to time since You saved me at the age of 6. I do know from that moment, I have been Your son. Everything that has been done to me and that I have done has happened as Your son. Nothing has gotten past You.

If my memory is correct, I do think whenever I have done something wrong, I have asked for forgiveness from You and anyone else I have wronged. There may be some forgiveness I have missed, but I know from past experience, You are good at bringing any I have missed to my attention.

So, however I got this Parkinson’s thing, I don’t like it. It’s no fun for me or Marcia and anyone else in our lives. I’m sure Your not happy about me having to live the rest of my life with this thing getting worse and worse either. Would You help me get rid of it? If there Is something I did to get it that I am unaware of, please show me. If it’s genetic or I have been exposed to some contamination that gave it to me, please clean me of whatever that may be and repair the damaged places.

I know I live in a world where mankind invited Parkinson’s in, but ever since I discovered my brother Jesus holding out His hand to me to save me, and I accepted His hand, I really haven’t been a citizen of this world anymore. Yes, I still have to live here for a while longer, but I would like to do it without a movement disorder.

I know I have asked for this a number of times in the last few years and some of my friends have asked for me, but I just thought I would ask again.
Whatever happens, You know that I love You and will love You forever. And I know that You love me even more and will love me forever. I hope your not disappointed in me because I still have Parkinson’s. I know faith pleases You. If my faith has been lacking, please let me know.
In closing, I really want to thank you for my life. Despite the Parkinson’s disease and the other bumps in the road to heaven, I really love the life You have given me. It’s greater than I ever imagined. And I know that if I shuffle up to the gates, I won’t be shuffling once I pass them.

Thank You for that gift and that assurance.
Your son,
Mark