After our recent congregational retreat, I felt challenged to memorized Romans 11. I started on September 1, with a goal to memorize one verse per day. It has gone pretty well, but I am one day behind, so I better catch up. It has been a while since I have memorized a longer passage of Scripture, but I find it to be so beneficial. Letting Scripture go down deep strengthens a person's mind and spirit (and maybe even body). If you want to join the challenge, here is the passage.
Rom 11:1-36 ESV
(1) I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin.
(2) God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to God against Israel?
(3) "Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life."
(4) But what is God's reply to him? "I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal."
(5) So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace.
(6) But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace.
(7) What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened,
(8) as it is written, "God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day."
(9) And David says, "Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a retribution for them;
(10) let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and bend their backs forever."
(11) So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous.
(12) Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean!
(13) Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry
(14) in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them.
(15) For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead?
(16) If the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches.
(17) But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree,
(18) do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you.
(19) Then you will say, "Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in."
(20) That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but stand in awe.
(21) For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you.
(22) Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.
(23) And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again.
(24) For if you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, the natural branches, be grafted back into their own olive tree.
(25) Lest you be wise in your own conceits, I want you to understand this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.
(26) And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, "The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob";
(27) "and this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins."
(28) As regards the gospel, they are enemies of God for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers.
(29) For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
(30) Just as you were at one time disobedient to God but now have received mercy because of their disobedience,
(31) so they too have now been disobedient in order that by the mercy shown to you they also may now receive mercy.
(32) For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all.
(33) Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
(34) "For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?"
(35) "Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?"
(36) For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Monday, September 7, 2009
Getting some rest
Last January I came down with pneumonia. It really knocked me down physically, I was in bed for two weeks and on shortened days for the third week. It was a forced staycation. In between the coughing, I slept, read books, and checked out Facebook. I had some difficulty staying in bed, but I had no other option but to rest. However, one good thing came out of the midst of that trial. I learned the importance of getting sleep.
College and graduate school ruined my sleep. I became very accustomed to staying up very late, working around the clock, and cramming as much work into as little sleep as possible. The habit was very hard to break, and it wasn't until I got pneumonia that I realized how harmful bad sleeping habits can be. I decided that I was going to make a concerted effort to get more sleep. However, it wasn't until June that I really put this into practice (I decided to try to be in bed before midnight--targeting between 10 and 11 pm). I have been able to keep this habit going (with only a few random nights staying up into the wee hours of the morning).
What are the results? Well I actually feel better, more alert, and less irritable (that is good for others). I get tired earlier, and it is hard for me to stay up so late. Life seems to be a little more manageable. Funny how it took so many years to realize that God's order of evening and morning at creation (rest and then awake) works the best.
College and graduate school ruined my sleep. I became very accustomed to staying up very late, working around the clock, and cramming as much work into as little sleep as possible. The habit was very hard to break, and it wasn't until I got pneumonia that I realized how harmful bad sleeping habits can be. I decided that I was going to make a concerted effort to get more sleep. However, it wasn't until June that I really put this into practice (I decided to try to be in bed before midnight--targeting between 10 and 11 pm). I have been able to keep this habit going (with only a few random nights staying up into the wee hours of the morning).
What are the results? Well I actually feel better, more alert, and less irritable (that is good for others). I get tired earlier, and it is hard for me to stay up so late. Life seems to be a little more manageable. Funny how it took so many years to realize that God's order of evening and morning at creation (rest and then awake) works the best.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Great finds
It has been while since I have blogged. I will start with the mundane: finding precious lost items. In the past year I have become a crossword puzzler. I never thought I would get such a kick out of it. Now I look forward to the Sunday puzzles. Yesterday, a near panic occurred when we couldn't find the section of the newspaper with the Sunday crossword puzzles. My roommates and I searched until the section was found in the recycling bin. We were all pretty excited when it was found.
The day before, it was my cell phone. When I went to service on Shabbat, I had it and then it was gone. I became a bit panicky. A lot of my life is on that phone. It was difficult to focus on the worship and message because my mind would go back to "what happened to my phone?" I kept praying, "Lord, You know where that phone is, help me to focus on You." After the service, I found it after diligent searching (and by using someone else's phone to call it). It was in the bottom of a clay pot surrounding a flower pot--the phone slide to the bottom in between the two pots. I would have never found it without hearing the ringer on my phone going off. Even after hearing the noise, it wasn't easy to locate, I followed the noise with my hand, and got it out (it was in a tight spot). There was much rejoicing in my heart.
I thought of the parable of the woman who searched for her lost coin and when she found it, had a party. The Lord is calling the lost with His voice and waiting for us to respond, so he can pull us out of a dark tight spot. Then there is great rejoicing.
On second thought, finding precious lost items is not mundane. It is actually rather miraculous.
The day before, it was my cell phone. When I went to service on Shabbat, I had it and then it was gone. I became a bit panicky. A lot of my life is on that phone. It was difficult to focus on the worship and message because my mind would go back to "what happened to my phone?" I kept praying, "Lord, You know where that phone is, help me to focus on You." After the service, I found it after diligent searching (and by using someone else's phone to call it). It was in the bottom of a clay pot surrounding a flower pot--the phone slide to the bottom in between the two pots. I would have never found it without hearing the ringer on my phone going off. Even after hearing the noise, it wasn't easy to locate, I followed the noise with my hand, and got it out (it was in a tight spot). There was much rejoicing in my heart.
I thought of the parable of the woman who searched for her lost coin and when she found it, had a party. The Lord is calling the lost with His voice and waiting for us to respond, so he can pull us out of a dark tight spot. Then there is great rejoicing.
On second thought, finding precious lost items is not mundane. It is actually rather miraculous.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
A Personal Passover
Can I share a "God moment" with you? I was driving to Vancouver last March and was asking the Lord some questions. One of the things I asked was "Are you punishing me?" As soon as I asked the question, I saw a Highway Patrol car, so I looked down and saw that I was driving 80 mph in a 70 mph zone. I was sure I was going to be pulled over. As I was pass the car, I kept watching my rear-view mirror. The patrol car pulled onto the highway, and I figured it was coming after me. Then it turned on its lights and pulled over the car three lanes away. The Lord spoke to me in the moment and said, "See I am not punishing you. You deserved to be punished, but I do not delight in punishing you." I cried (and slowed down).
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Be Still
Observing Yom Kippur this past week had a way of focusing me that I did not expect. I woke up on Thursday morning hearing the Lord speaking over and over to me, "Be still and know that I am God." I lay frozen in my bed for quite a while. While I lay under my cozy blankets, I experienced a peace and calm that was wonderful. Although the phone calls that had gone to my voicemail earlier that morning plagued me a little, I realized that those calls could wait until the next day. Since then, I have felt a sense of calm that I haven't had for a long time. It is a realization that God is in charge and I need to trust Him. If I get fully stressed about a situation, it does not change what needs to be done to accomplish the task. Why do I work myself into mental exhaustion? What is the benefit?
One of the things that I have realized from observing God's appointed times is that I am more open/able to hear what He is saying on those days because distractions are nearly gone. The best part is that He speaks, wants to communicate with us, and desires good things for us. Blessed be His Name.
One of the things that I have realized from observing God's appointed times is that I am more open/able to hear what He is saying on those days because distractions are nearly gone. The best part is that He speaks, wants to communicate with us, and desires good things for us. Blessed be His Name.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Speaking the truth
The period of time between Yom Teruah and Yom Kippur is know as the "Ten Days of Awe." This is a time of introspection; a time to examine ourselves and ask the Lord to show us areas of sin. This year has been particularly interesting in that I am encountering some emotionally intense situations. When emotions rise to the surface, underlying motives are sometimes more readily identified. I have also been observing how delivering the same message in even slightly different ways can produce dramatically different results.
There are a few Scriptures that I have been mulling over lately.
"Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another." (Pro 27:17 ESV)
"but speaking truth in love, we may grow up in all things into him, who is the head, Messiah; from whom all the body, being fitted and knit together through that which every joint supplies, according to the working in measure of each individual part, makes the body increase to the building up of itself in love." (Eph 4:15-16 HNV)
"For the word of God is living, and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and is able to discern the thoughts and intentions of the heart." (Heb 4:12 HNV)
Sometimes, truth is cutting, but if it is spoken in love and humility, it is easier for the recipient to accept and incorporate the truth into his/her life. If both the truth teller and the truth receiver remain humble, the sting will be lessened. It is the difference between gently removing a sliver from the hand of a person who is remaining still, and brusquely pulling the sliver out of the hand of someone who keeps moving around. In both cases, the sliver may be removed, but the amount of emotional and physical pain present in the process will be significantly different.
Clean, purposeful, pruning hurts and may not be pretty in the moment, but the results are beautiful.
There are a few Scriptures that I have been mulling over lately.
"Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another." (Pro 27:17 ESV)
"but speaking truth in love, we may grow up in all things into him, who is the head, Messiah; from whom all the body, being fitted and knit together through that which every joint supplies, according to the working in measure of each individual part, makes the body increase to the building up of itself in love." (Eph 4:15-16 HNV)
"For the word of God is living, and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and is able to discern the thoughts and intentions of the heart." (Heb 4:12 HNV)
Sometimes, truth is cutting, but if it is spoken in love and humility, it is easier for the recipient to accept and incorporate the truth into his/her life. If both the truth teller and the truth receiver remain humble, the sting will be lessened. It is the difference between gently removing a sliver from the hand of a person who is remaining still, and brusquely pulling the sliver out of the hand of someone who keeps moving around. In both cases, the sliver may be removed, but the amount of emotional and physical pain present in the process will be significantly different.
Clean, purposeful, pruning hurts and may not be pretty in the moment, but the results are beautiful.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
From the Archive
Because tomorrow at sundown begins another Yom Teruah (Day of Blowing), I thought I would repost something I wrote a couple years ago relating to this day. It was one of those "aha moments" for me in the desert. Maybe it will speak to you as well.
I had a memorable experience as I was making my way back to the US from Kenya. I needed to get to Nairobi from the remote area where I had been, which was about 16 hours by land vehicle, but only about 3 hours by plane. A Mission Aviation Fellowship plane made a stop every Tuesday and Friday at Korr. The missionary I was visiting had one of the ambulance drivers take me to catch the 6-seater propeller plane. He drove me two hours in the sand and heat to Korr.
I was told that the plane could arrive anytime between 11 am and 1 pm (typically). We (the ambulance driver and I) got to Korr a little before 11 am. For the first 20 minutes or so, the driver took care of a couple errands and I visited with someone I had met a year earlier. I was a little nervous because I didn’t know exactly where the plane would land, and I didn’t want to be preoccupied with something else when it came. My driver assured me that we would know when the plane arrived. Nevertheless, I told the driver that I wanted to wait close to the airstrip. He drove me to a Catholic compound, which was right next to the airstrip and where there was some shade. We sat and waited. I looked in the direction of the "runway," or where I was told it was. It just looked like a flat open space of sand right next to another flat open space of sand. Cattle were walking along a path near it.
As I sat in the dusty heat in a Toyota Land Cruiser ambulance waiting for the little propeller plane to appear in the clouds, I began to doubt. Airplanes in the northern desert of Kenya are not a common sight. The only things I saw in the sky were a few clouds, birds, dust, and the hot sun. I kept watching the sky while I listened for an airplane. I started to wonder if it was really going to come. You never know in Africa what type of delays can take place and there is no fast or reliable way to communicate a delay in that part of the country. What an unlikely place for an airplane to land--in the middle of the desert. Still, there shouldn't have been much reason to doubt since I arrived in the same place two weeks prior in a plane operated by the same organization. It was only 12:20, so it was still within the expected arrival time, but for some reason, I was really starting to worry. How long would I wait? What if it got to be 2, 3, or 4 pm and it hadn’t arrived yet? At what time would I decide to quit waiting? Then what would I do?
I started thinking about how much faith it required for me to believe that the plane would actually arrive. It was much more difficult to believe it here in the desert than at “real airports” where monitors list the expected arrival time and gate agents assure customers that the plane is coming. This time I was trusting the word of a person I talked to a week earlier on a satellite phone.
As I sat there and looked at the sky, I realized that it was just a few days before Yom Teruah or Day of Blowing (Sept 2006), where we look forward to the day when the trumpet will sound, the whole world will hear it, and the Lord will return in the clouds. I was actively listening & looking at the sky waiting for a plane...do I wait and watch as intently for the Lord to return? Do I believe God's Word that the Messiah is coming again? How often do I grow impatient and start thinking that maybe He really isn’t coming?
Suddenly, the driver said, "It's coming. I hear the plane!" I didn’t hear anything. But as I listened I started to hear it. The driver heard it much sooner than I did because his ear was trained to hear the plane. In a similar way, I want my ear well-trained to hear the Lord.
I was reminded of these verses:
“But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed. Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace.” (2Pe 3:8-14 ESV)
I had a memorable experience as I was making my way back to the US from Kenya. I needed to get to Nairobi from the remote area where I had been, which was about 16 hours by land vehicle, but only about 3 hours by plane. A Mission Aviation Fellowship plane made a stop every Tuesday and Friday at Korr. The missionary I was visiting had one of the ambulance drivers take me to catch the 6-seater propeller plane. He drove me two hours in the sand and heat to Korr.
I was told that the plane could arrive anytime between 11 am and 1 pm (typically). We (the ambulance driver and I) got to Korr a little before 11 am. For the first 20 minutes or so, the driver took care of a couple errands and I visited with someone I had met a year earlier. I was a little nervous because I didn’t know exactly where the plane would land, and I didn’t want to be preoccupied with something else when it came. My driver assured me that we would know when the plane arrived. Nevertheless, I told the driver that I wanted to wait close to the airstrip. He drove me to a Catholic compound, which was right next to the airstrip and where there was some shade. We sat and waited. I looked in the direction of the "runway," or where I was told it was. It just looked like a flat open space of sand right next to another flat open space of sand. Cattle were walking along a path near it.
As I sat in the dusty heat in a Toyota Land Cruiser ambulance waiting for the little propeller plane to appear in the clouds, I began to doubt. Airplanes in the northern desert of Kenya are not a common sight. The only things I saw in the sky were a few clouds, birds, dust, and the hot sun. I kept watching the sky while I listened for an airplane. I started to wonder if it was really going to come. You never know in Africa what type of delays can take place and there is no fast or reliable way to communicate a delay in that part of the country. What an unlikely place for an airplane to land--in the middle of the desert. Still, there shouldn't have been much reason to doubt since I arrived in the same place two weeks prior in a plane operated by the same organization. It was only 12:20, so it was still within the expected arrival time, but for some reason, I was really starting to worry. How long would I wait? What if it got to be 2, 3, or 4 pm and it hadn’t arrived yet? At what time would I decide to quit waiting? Then what would I do?
I started thinking about how much faith it required for me to believe that the plane would actually arrive. It was much more difficult to believe it here in the desert than at “real airports” where monitors list the expected arrival time and gate agents assure customers that the plane is coming. This time I was trusting the word of a person I talked to a week earlier on a satellite phone.
As I sat there and looked at the sky, I realized that it was just a few days before Yom Teruah or Day of Blowing (Sept 2006), where we look forward to the day when the trumpet will sound, the whole world will hear it, and the Lord will return in the clouds. I was actively listening & looking at the sky waiting for a plane...do I wait and watch as intently for the Lord to return? Do I believe God's Word that the Messiah is coming again? How often do I grow impatient and start thinking that maybe He really isn’t coming?
Suddenly, the driver said, "It's coming. I hear the plane!" I didn’t hear anything. But as I listened I started to hear it. The driver heard it much sooner than I did because his ear was trained to hear the plane. In a similar way, I want my ear well-trained to hear the Lord.
I was reminded of these verses:
“But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed. Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace.” (2Pe 3:8-14 ESV)
New way to make stem cells is safe: research
Another interesting article:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080925/sc_nm/us_stemcellssci
I have been of the opinion for the last several years that there can be much gained from taking the time to really understand how stem cells actually work. There is so much that is not known in the area of adult stem cells, which makes wanting to use embryonic stem cells rather reckless. We are now seeing more and more what can be done with regular old skin cells. The fact is that people around the world have been doing research using embryonic stem cells, and it does not seem that they have had any greater advances than those researchers using adult stem cells.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080925/sc_nm/us_stemcellssci
I have been of the opinion for the last several years that there can be much gained from taking the time to really understand how stem cells actually work. There is so much that is not known in the area of adult stem cells, which makes wanting to use embryonic stem cells rather reckless. We are now seeing more and more what can be done with regular old skin cells. The fact is that people around the world have been doing research using embryonic stem cells, and it does not seem that they have had any greater advances than those researchers using adult stem cells.
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