One of those?

And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. Luke 2:3-7 (ESV) Mary and Joseph were in a town with their relatives. Mary was in labor, about to give birth to her first child and nobody would give up their room for her. This sounds absurd. You would think that someone in Joseph’s family would be kind to Mary and Joseph. His family was either the most calloused, self-centered people on the planet, or they thought that Mary was unclean or evil because she was not yet married to Joseph. Perhaps word was out that Mary was “one of those” girls and that she was actually blaming God for her pregnancy. Perhaps the look people gave her was one of disgust rather than concern.  The partially-informed often make rash decisions in life’s most important matters. This is not healthy and should be a lesson for all

Those who know, rejoice!

In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”  Luke 1:39-45 (ESV) There is a simple rule that has often been applied though the ministries in which I have been involved and it is this: “Those who know, rejoice, and those who do not know, criticize.” Elizabeth, her baby, and Mary knew what God was doing and they rejoiced. Those who were looking in from the outside could not figure out how Mary could be a pregnant virgin, and criticized. Joseph eventually knew and rejoiced. The angels knew, the shepherds knew, and they rejoiced. I need to spend my time knowing, not criticizing

God Has A Plan

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus."  Luke 1:26-31 (ESV) Imagine the fear, confusion, anxiety, and excitement Mary was experiencing. One cannot help but wonder if the method God was using with Mary was a roadmap as to how He works in all people’s lives. God had a plan and this plan involved impossible circumstances that only those who were really in touch with Him would understand and accept. Those who were looking at the situation from the outside would easily dismiss the eventual outcome Today, many ministries seem obsessed with making sure what they do makes sense to those who may not be in close proximity to the King and therefore cannot understand His plan. I need to be excited about God’s plan, if I know His plan, even if those around me cannot understand

There will come a time....

“But when you see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not to be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not go down, nor enter his house, to take anything out, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that it may not happen in winter. For in those days there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning of the creation that God created until now, and never will be."   Mark 13:14-19 (ESV) We think we can handle any crisis that comes our way. We make shirts with slogans declaring our cause with the word “strong” after it to show our resiliency. We are beginning to believe that we can face any challenge that comes our way and be victorious. Jesus makes it clear that there will come a time when the self-inflicted problems on this earth, will be such that no man will be able to withstand them or change them. There will come a time where Godlessness will be evident and punished, a time where God fulfills His promises. Those who prepare for such a moment are wise. Those who ignore God in hopes that this time will never come are foolish. For now, the choice is mine

Made for Adversity

We think we are in unique times. We are, and we were last year, and the year before, and will be a year from now. The past twelve months have been the most unusual of my life of that which is both strange and familiar. It has been strange in that all the circumstances seem new, and familiar, perhaps, because nothing important has changed. 

All living things are in a constant state of change. We are getting stronger or weaker, older and wiser, or older and more foolish. Our choices can help direct the change, but they cannot stop change. It is the constant of life. 

As we want to stop change, we once again are confused, and eventually bewildered, because we are attempting to take on a characteristic of God that we cannot attain. He alone does not change as He is the same yesterday today and forever. 

His mercies may be new to me every morning because Dave, the finite one, is learning more about the infinite one. I can grow in stature, knowledge, and wisdom, and I should, whereas God cannot. I need to continually work at gaining a proper perspective, whereas God has no perspective. I need to continually align my opinions with truth, whereas God is truth. 

I need to plan for the future, whereas God is in the future. For some reason, I need to seek God, to look for Him, even though He is evident and is everywhere. 

Since I continually think that my times are unique, I usually live so much in the moment that the futures will neither be prepared for or anticipated.  I keep thinking that these unique times shall pass, and, one day I shall pass, my body will rot into the earth from which it came, and my life will be forgotten, as a fog that has cleared the harbor. 

Being mindful or being in the moment is like all good things in that it could be something that drives us to be who we should be, or it blinds us from being who we could be. 

Throughout the years, I have had several surgeries. Each of them demanded that I take recovery time. Each setback demanded attention, and if I would focus on the instructions of my doctors and therapists, I could look forward to a better and less painful future. I needed to focus on the moment because I was focused on the future. If I focus on the future alone, I miss what is happening in the moments. If I divorce the future from the moment, I have allowed my focus to fog my reason, and will be ill- prepared for what is to come. 

The “purists” who talk about always being mindful or always being focused on the future have missed the delicate balancing act that creates the “awe” in life. 

In reality, we who struggle with narcissism are continually focused on the moment, and how the moment benefits, honors, and pleases us. If we focus on the future, we focus on how the future will benefit us, and thereby have devolved a secret, yet erosive style that breeds disappointment and regret. 

When we live waiting for the circumstances to change, we will find that they will change, with or without us, and with or without our efforts. Positive change is surrounded by what does not change, and negative change is dependent upon what changes. My health, fortune, and even my freedom will one day change. The decisions I make during those tough transitional times will be based on my ability to be dual focused on both the world in which I live, and the world as it should be and one day will be. 

During the now infamous COVID19 national shutdown, I wanted to immediately make a video telling our supporters how this national shutdown is affecting the various ministries in which we have been privileged to invest our lives. Yet, after thought and prayer, I realized that all our friends knew what we were going through as they were going through the same. I thought more about how my thinking reflected the moment, a piece of the eternal pie, but not the whole, how I was mired in self-thinking, and, even though every situation was different, each was the same, and my concern needed to now as always be in honoring God and thinking of others, while preparing for the future we think we will have. 

Our rest in life comes from the object of our faith, not the circumstances. If the object of our faith is our government, medical professionals, teachers, or pastors, we will be disappointed. If our faith is in Him who does not change, we will be fine, and we will see that in the long run, nothing important has changed.

The adverse circumstances we face reveals what we believe, and about in whom we believe. If we do not like what has been revealed, we need to adjust both our thinking and our lives. 

In a strange way, we can recklessly alter the future by continually focusing on the crisis du jour, and waiting for it to pass, rather than using it to create the future. 

All that has happened, is happening, and will happen is under the controlling hand of God, and it has not taken Him by surprise. If we find ourselves in the middle of a crisis for which we were not prepared, then we were not listening during the “good” times when God was preparing us such as time as this. 

When we suffer a heart attack because of poor exercise and eating habits, it is too late to eat right and begin an exercise program, for the damage is already done. It was the good times that demanded us to think about the end times, yet we did not because we felt we could not, which is one of the ways we lie to ourselves. 

Healthy people, originally made from clay, live a faith rest life that has been formulated in the good times and fired in the kiln of adversity. Adversity happens to all, regardless of who they are and where they live, and it will either prove you right or destroy you. 

For now, the choice is ours. 

Societal Confusion

A confused society acts in accordance with its confusion, eroding the mortar of a culture and nation. 

Confusion is the fruit of each person doing what is right in his own eyes. We become so self-absorbed that we cannot comprehend how or why someone would not think like we think. Our world revolves around our thinking, our comfort, our likes, and our dislikes. How could others’ thinking be different? Why do they not understand my world? 

Those who are not confused realize that they are but a small and insignificant part of the universe. They are insignificant because of their place, not their position. If everyone holds the right position in their place, they have tremendous significance and security. Our position is tied to who we are associated with, and why, and not what we do and where, or how much we have and what we do with it. 

My position is that of a child of the King. It is the King, or God, who has demonstrated my significance in that He created and sustains me, and He has created the universe for me to inhabit. It is the King of Kings who is my Father, to whom I can go anytime, anywhere, and who has limitless power and authority in this world and the universe. The King does not need me but wants me, and He has made provision for me to enjoy Him now and forever. In this understanding, my significance and security grow, and my confusion melts away.

Apart from such a relationship, I must create my own truth, my own expectations, and my own world. As easy as it is for me to understand this world I created, it becomes impossible for others to grasp its meaning or my significance. It then becomes a world where the terms of good and bad replace right and wrong, and each person does what is right in his own eyes. 

In that make-believe world, violence is justified, hatred is authorized, and con men abound. In this make-believe world, men redefine critical terms to reflect their kingdom’s rules, and use whatever means they can to create a world they can control. 

In the make-believe world, one only needs to believe something for it to be right, and tolerance towards myself and my kingdom’s subjects is expected, and, in fact, demanded, as I place strict parameters on what is meant by tolerance. 

In the make-believe world, the obvious is no longer obvious, the logic no longer logical, and real power and authority is replaced by the appearance of power and authority. 

In the confusing world, the Emperor has no clothes, and even though the world recognizes that fact, they have begun to believe he is clothed, and that they are just not seeing things correctly. 

Part of the confusion comes from lies that have been wrapped in the shroud of science, equality, love and respect. It’s confusing because of the redefinition of these words. 

Science is no longer searching. They are trying to prove something. Equality is attempting to erase the uniqueness of the individual, love has been redefined as enabling, and respect simply means to be in agreement with another. 

Perhaps the most dangerous trend is thinking that logical people do not believe in God, when, in reality, all logic points to God. 

For example, the iPad on which I type obviously had a designer who designed the iPad with a specific purpose in mind. There is a right way and a wrong way to use this iPad. If I wanted to use it for a life preserver, it would not work, and I would be accused of being a fool. Anyone who would declare that this iPad was not designed and did not have a purpose would be foolish, by any and all standards, and by all people in all places. 

If logic dictates that the iPad had designers and purpose, then it also, and obviously, had to be created within the context of the design and purpose. Once again, for me to think any other thought would be universally illogical. 

The iPad is simple compared to the scope and grandeur of the universe. To know that this iPad had design, purpose, and creators, and to reject that the universe had design, purpose, and a creator is ludicrous as best. 

We must carefully reject wrong definitions because they will drive us to a confusing lifestyle void of real answers and purpose. 

Proximity

"For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my garments?” And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’” And he looked around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”"   Mark 5:28-34 (ESV)

Proximity to God is always the path to acceptance, significance, and safety. Always. Regardless of the problem, the answer is found in our proximity to God.

Those who choose to remain a distance from Him want to endure life’s problems on their own. Those who choose to “touch” Him choose to allow Him to give them abundant life.