Filled my medicinal marijuana (MM) prescription today. A nice lunch w/ Cori and Lily. Finally got to the BBH. Slept a little because I tried 2 MM gummie bears. 1 too many! :/ Just ate popcorn. I like popcorn.
1. *** What! my soul, has he been so long about thy salvation, and will not he accomplish it? - Has he from everlasting been going forth to save me, and will he lose me now? *** What! Has he carried me in his hand, as his precious jewel, and will he now let me slip from between his fingers? - Did he choose me before the mountains were brought forth, or the channels of the deep were digged, and will he reject me now? *** Impossible! I am sure he would not have loved me so long if he had not been a changeless Lover. *** If he could grow weary of me, he would have been tired of me long before now. *** If he had not loved me with a love as deep as hell, and as strong as death, he would have turned from me long ago. => Oh, joy above all joys, to know that I am his everlasting and inalienable inheritance, given to him by his Father or ever the earth was! Everlasting love shall be the pillow for my head this night! 2. A Grief Observed - 3. "should write a book" - only 4x? Dang. 4. Accordance. POOR One lacking material goods, honor, and power. Recent anthropological and sociological studies have shown that the “poor” is not just an economic concept, but is more especially a question of honor, social status, a lack of power that led to oppression. In the OT different blocks of traditions emphasize different aspects. The legal texts regulate the treatment of the poor, seeking to protect the poor, widows, orphans, or strangers (Lev. 19:9-10; 25:25, 35). The prophets show a concern for those economically exploited. They protest the oppression of the poor at the hands of the greedy. Isaiah attacks those landowners who amass vast properties (Isa. 5:8), and condemns the denial of rights to the poor (10:2). Amos draws attention to the oppression of the poor (Amos 2:7; 4:1; 5:11). The wisdom [p. 1071] traditions view poverty from different perspectives. Proverbs sees poverty as one’s own fault (Prov. 6:10-11; 10:4, 15; 13:18; 21:17), while for Job poverty results from political and economic exploitation. Job argues his innocence through his defense of the poor (Job 29:12, 16; 30:25; 31:16). The Psalms present God as the defender of the poor (Ps. 22:26[MT 27]; 35:10). The narrative literature of the Pentateuch and Deuteronomistic history show little interest in the poor, concerned more with critiquing the kingship. Three groups within Israelite society — widows, orphans, and strangers — experienced poverty as particularly harsh. In a society structured upon the male as the worker, the widow and orphan struggled to survive: powerless, they depended upon the good will of others (Deut. 24:17). The strangers, as ones who did not belong, had no bonds to their new society. These groups shared a common poverty: a lack of status whereby the powerful and unscrupulous took advantage. Concern is expressed for their precarious social status (Prov. 31:9; Ps. 82:3) — what others had done to them to cause their poverty (Ps. 10:2; Isa. 32:7). In addition to economic considerations the NT also focuses on the lack of honor, social status, and powerlessness which led to the oppression of the poor. The Epistle of James stands out as a writing concerned for the poor, who lack power — they are at the mercy of the rich. The rich “have dishonored the poor” who have no rights — the poor are brought to court by the rich (Jas. 2:6). The rich are boastful and arrogant, relying solely upon their own power (Jas. 4:13-17). Wealth has brought honor to the rich and shame to the poor (Jas. 2:1-7). True religion is defined as “caring for orphans and widows in their distress” (Jas. 1:27) — two groups identified with the poor in the OT because they have no rights or power to defend themselves. In the Synoptic Gospels the life-styles of John the Baptist (Mark 1:6), Jesus (vv. 38–39; 11:12), and the disciples (1:18, 20; 2:23–25) embrace poverty. Matthew opens Jesus’ teaching with a blessing on “the poor in spirit” (Matt. 5:3), while Luke 6:20 has simply “the poor” whose status is lowly, whose spirit is crushed by their powerlessness. This saying implies that the poor also enter the kingdom. It challenges the arrogance of those who deny status to the poor by refusing them their rights. They will be part of God’s kingdom that reinstates their honor and power. The Gospel of Luke shows an empathy for the poor and hostility toward the rich that is more pronounced than in the other Gospels. Again the status of the poor is championed, e.g., in the parables of admission to the messianic banquet (Luke 14:15-24) and the rich man and Lazarus (16:19–31). The other NT writings pay scant attention to the poor. Paul is chiefly concerned with the collection for the poor in Jerusalem (Gal. 2:10; Rom. 15:26). In 2 Cor. 8-9 Paul calls upon the wealthy to give as much as possible so that economic inequality could be bridged. 1 Peter is written to the “homeless” in the Diaspora. In a sense it reflects the “strangers” of the OT. The good news proclaimed to them (1 Pet. 1:12, 25) imparts a sense of dignity and status (1:5, 9; 2:9–10). 5. Comeback to 6. Not yet 7. Cori. BBH 8 I am a little past the 6 year mark in my wonderful brain tumor journey. A couple months ago I removed myself from my doctors and my meds. I know, I know, not the smartest thing to do. I don't care. What appears to be helpful now is walking and writing. I do not know to what extent but I am self-aware enough to know it is positive. Consequently, I will walk and talk. I have chosen to talk via this Blog. I am almost positive it will have no value to my friends who read it, though I hope they do read it, but I am hoping I can leverage this for greater healing within my frontal lobe.
First, I need to sort of layout the borders of the puzzle. What do I really want to talk about? For now, here are a few things that are possibilities: 1. God speaks to me. He does! What did He say to me this morning? 2. Write a review on the current books I have read or are reading (also Accelerate). 3. Books I have wanted to write. How many times have I said- I should write a book on <this> 4. 7-App Journey. I have so many wonderful Bible resources. I will choose my top 7 and go through one each day/week. M- Logos, Tu- Olive Tree, W- iBooks, Th- PocketBible, F- e-Sword, Sa- WordSearch, Su- Accordance 5. What about online? BlueLetter, YouVersion, Precept, BibleHub, Bible.org, StudyLight, Bible Tools, lmw.org, SonicLight, BibleGateway, Austin Bible 6. GMO stories 7. Family updates 8. Deep Thoughts Then I can categorize them and review them in the right navbar :) Do You Luff God?
Do you ever feel like you are stagnant in your Christian life? That you are not bearing fruit? You no longer feel close to God? You are not experiencing peace and joy? Or maybe even that God has left you? I have felt all of these in my 40+ years walking with the Lord. During these times I would ask myself, then ask the Lord, "why do I feel this way?" Usually, I would quickly realize something was off with me, sort of along the lines of "if you don't feel close to God, guess who moved?" So I would pray, "Father, I want to drawn near to You. Help me see and put aside every sin in my life. To humbly receive Your Word and abide by it." (James 1:21,22,25; 4:18) That seemed to get me back on track but it wasn't until recently that I could see, and fully realize, what exactly was going on. That is what I would like to share with you. What God gave me was a new understanding of one of the most familiar verses in the Bible: 'And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit' - Eph 5:18. I know you were probably hoping for something more profound but hang with me here. If you are like me you have known this verse for a long time. You also know that it is fundamental to living the Christian life. You also know deep down that this is what you need and what you ultimately desire. Also, like me, you have been somewhat confused by what it really means and even more so, how to do it. Sort of like if someone told you, "be filled with happiness today, or be filled with hope, or be filled with lunch." You would say, "yes, thank you very much." Then you would think, "what do they mean? That happiness/hope/lunch will come my way? That I should do certain things that make happiness/hope/lunch come my way? That they didn't mean that I should do anything at all and it was just a nice sentiment?" So, what did Paul really mean by this? I am not a Theologian so I need to first borrow some wisdom from Andrew Wilson. "In the biblical languages, there is just one word for Spirit, breath, and wind (ruach in Hebrew, pneuma in Paul’s Greek). But in English, we have three different words: breath (from the Old English braet, meaning scent), spirit (from the Latin spiritus, meaning spirit or breath), and wind (from the German wind). So we don’t necessarily see a connection between being filled with the Spirit, filled with breath, and filled with wind. In fact, many of us probably think of being “filled with the Spirit” in terms of liquid, like a glass being filled with water, which raises various questions. (Why aren’t we full already? Do we leak? Can the Spirit be spilled?) But Paul’s original wording—“be filled with the Spirit/breath/wind”—would make people think of being filled with air. It might call to mind a pipe or a trumpet, which can only fulfill its purpose when it is “filled with the breath.” Or, even better, you might think of a sailboat, which requires a power beyond itself (the wind) to go anywhere. Paul is using a dynamic image, not a static one. A glass of water only needs filling once; a sailboat won’t be useful without continual filling." If we start with this and then applying it to anything driven by air we will begin to undertsatnd what Paul meant. Let's choose sailing. Most everyone knows that sailing is both a great science and art of making sure your sails are always full of air. There is always a best use of the boats orientation and the sails to move forward. To this end, two terms are used continuously- luffing and tell-tales. Bear with me again and read the sailing definitions of these terms: "In sailing, luffing refers to when a sailing vessel is steered far enough toward the direction of the wind ("windward"), or the sheet controlling a sail is eased so far past optimal trim, that airflow over the surfaces of the sail is disrupted and the sail begins to "flap" or "luff" (the luff of the sail is usually where this first becomes evident). This is not always done in error; for example, the sails will luff when the bow of the boat passes through the direction of the wind as the sailboat is tacked. Luff telltales show what is happening with the wind as it goes over the luff of the sail. Instead of waiting for the sail to luff and slow you down, using the telltales allows you to correct the sail trim before the sail flaps." Do you see where I am going now? Another way of understanding what Paul is saying is "Always be like a good sailor that orient's his boat and sails to get the optimum power from the wind. Be on the alert always to avoid, and to address, any luffing of it's sails. Meaning, orient your life, your heart, emotions and will so that you are always being driven fully by the Holy Spirit. Always watch your tell-tales and pray for God to keep you from luffing, in your moment by moment voyage with Him." *** Next post I will speak to what luffing and the tell-tales look like in your daily walk with God. And, then, speak to tangible ways to orient our boat and sails to maximize the winds (Spirit) effect on our lives. It is great to now be on staff for ISI but what does Campus Staff really do? Primarily, to partner with the university and local churches to meet the pressing needs of international students while they are here in the US. What are their pressing needs? To be welcomed when they arrive here and help them to get settled. Some need help before they arrive in choosing a school. No matter how much they prepared, there is quite a culture shock when they arrive and they need help with the basic skills of surviving in the US. Many need help with their visa's while they are here- keeping them current or extending them, if necessary. Many will also need help applying and preparing for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) as required by the university they are attending. They all need help with their academics, especially in how to succeed in our educational system. Others are here not just for their academic education but their professional development so that they can return as leaders in their discipline in a global economy. This means they need coaching as professionals and leaders in their career from a US perspective. Finally, they need help in returning home. Just as there was a big culture shock coming here, they face another culture shock going home. They have changed considerably, their friends and family have changed, and perhaps there have been political, business and/or environmental changes that have drastically changed their familiar home. They need to be prepared to address those significant re-entry changes as well, Those are not all of their needs but you can see those are enough to keep all the Campus Staff very busy. Of course, embedded in these needs is their most pressing need of all- to hear about a lovesick Father who anxiously and constantly awaits and watches for His wayward son or daughter to return home to Him so He can wipe away their shame and celebrate their new life.
One lesson I learned repeatedly as an engineer was- it is hard to make things and it is hard to fix things. Clearly the bible teaches this in its account of creation and the curse God puts on the earth in response to man choosing his way instead of God's way. The curse for the man was to be the earth would now be hostile toward him. Whereas, when man was abiding by God's plan, the garden would bring forth plants, fruits and vegetables with no effort needed to fight and prevent weeds or diseases. However, afterwards it was now a struggle to keep the garden healthy and productive. Part of this curse is known as the second law of thermodynamics which simply states that when things are left to their own on planet earth they will move in the direction of disorder, or an increase in entropy. So, that explains the lesson I learned as an engineer.
Yesterday, the brake lever broke on my Eco scooter and I have no idea why. I squeezed it and rather than the break activating, it snapped at the handle.This seems to be 2 problems. Why the brake did not compress as normal and then the consequence, the handle breaking off. Also, my Jeep had been leaking gas lately and I looked at the engine and saw that my fuel hose was tearing at the ends. So, I pulled it off and cut the frayed end off and re-attached it. Well, rather than fixing it, the hose sprung a new leak further down. Great. Now, i need to buy a new hose and start the repair process all over. Something else will probably break as I install the new hose. As I said in the beginning though, this is really what life is. A series of problems, days after day, whether we want to admit it, or not. Problems in the house, in the car, in the job, in our health, in relationships... it all seems to be a tangled ball of string to me, at times. I don't even know which end to start unraveling. In these times, which is more often than not, it is sure good to know God specializes in making and fixing things. It is NOT hard for Him. He wants things back to normal, as He originally created. Just look at the first chapters of Genesis and then the last chapters of Revelation. Everything is restored back to the way God intended it. No more pain, death, crying, problems... or entropy. God can begin that process in you right now. What means even more to me is not only that He can, but that in His great love He wants to On August 21, 2014 I officially came on as Campus Staff at ISI. Having worked with young adults for 30 years at Intel and in my non-profit, this was the next step in pursuing my passion to make a significant difference in students lives.
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AuthorErv Thomas is married with two children and is a Mechanical Engineer. Archives
March 2023
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