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  • OYB March 17

    Today´s reading:
    OT: Numbers 26:1-51
    NT: Luke 2:36-52
    Ps: Psalm 60
    Pr: Proverbs 11:15

    Today´s notable verses:

    And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.

    Luke 2:40 (NIV)

    As for speaking a blessing over one’s children, here’s a good place to start! Certainly Christ in us can pass on Christ to our children through a prayer based on this description of the childhood Christ: growth, strength, wisdom, and grace. Amen!

    “Why were you searching for me?” he asked. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”

    Luke 2:49 (NIV)

    Where else would one expect Christ to be, other than in his Father’s House, about his Father’s business? Shouldn’t the same be expected of us; more importantly, shouldn’t we expect the same from ourselves?

    The One Year Bible Blog notes:

    So, for me, the second half of this verse tonight is a good verse on boundaries – it’s better to refuse than suffer later…. I like that…. I need that….

    Too many Christians think it wrong, or somehow demonstrative of weak faith, to say “no” when asked to do something. However, I think the opposite is true. It is wrong to sacrifice our best for the sake of the good – which is exactly what we do, when we willingly stretch ourselves too thin and over-commit our time and resources. We are called to be good stewards of our time, resources, abilities, and relationships. Good stewardship requires making decisions regarding how we will use that with which we have been entrusted.

    Certainly, we can do all things through Christ, and with God everything is possible – but God never asks us to do everything. To do so would be contrary to His nature and will that men work interdependently with one another. God has called each of us to do something – great or small, no matter – and our responsibility is to fulfill that calling to the best of our ability. There are many good things I can do, but often, to do them would rob me of time and resources to be doing the thing I’m supposed to be doing.

    Therefore, if we are to achieve the excellence to which we are called to strive, we must understand and discern when we are to say “yes” and when we are to say “no”. This discernment demonstrates both wisdom, and faith.

  • Spiritside

    Spiritside, welcome to the OYB Blogroll!

  • OYB March 16

    Today´s reading:
    OT: Numbers 24, Numbers 25
    NT: Luke 2:1-35
    Ps: Psalm 59
    Pr: Proverbs 11:14

    Today´s notable verse:

    16 But I will sing of your strength,
    in the morning I will sing of your love;
    for you are my fortress,
    my refuge in times of trouble.
    17 O my Strength, I sing praise to you;
    you, O God, are my fortress, my loving God.

    Psalm 59:16-17 (NIV)

    What a beautiful, comforting perspective of God: Strength, fortress, refuge! No matter the hardships I have faced these several months, they have only served to ground me all the more firmly in my Refuge, to rely all the more completely on God my Strength, and to demonstrate all the more clearly my Fortress. These past several months truly have been a unique season in my life, but they have only resulted in increasing my desire and ability to sing praise to my God for His love and protection.

    The One Year Bible Blog asks:

    Proverbs chapter 11 verse 14 is a great teaching that it is wise to seek the counsel of others.

    Yep! More thoughts on that when I get my Crown homework uploaded…

  • Christian Carnival 113

    This week’s Christian Carnival is up, hosted by Light Along the Journey – the “Innovative Edition.”

  • Flag Burning and Cross Building

    Surely, if we can even discuss whether burning the American flag is a form of protected political expression (not speech), then a church building a cross must be protected religious exercise.

    When it comes to tony Town and Country, some residents like to say there’s an understated character in the city.

    So imagine the response in this enclave of million-dollar homes and manicured estates when a church proposed building an illuminated cross on its grounds adjacent to Highway 40. And not just any cross. This one would be made of glass and steel, soaring 99 feet into the air – a height equivalent to five streetlights stacked on top of each other.

    …

    He claimed that when the church first approached the city with its intention to erect the cross, the city had no such height restrictions, but added them soon after. He called that “an effort to erect obstacles to the exercise of our rights of religious freedom.”

    Hey Town and Country, remember this pesky little line?

    Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

    I’m sure you do so hate it when the Constitution gets in the way…

  • I Knew The Day Would Come

    I almost didn’t post this, because I know she’ll read it; and I don’t want her to feel guilty for having the happiness she deserves.

    I expected it… I prayed for it, sincerely… I knew one day it would happen.

    But I still wasn’t ready for it.

    When it was over, I knew it, and accepted it. I never wanted or asked God to change it – just tried to begin to move on.

    And I want more than anything for her, that she be happy.

    But I wasn’t ready for it – ready to face the reality of her with someone else, having feelings for someone else. And now I’m dealing with the remnant of the hurt: what hadn’t – couldn’t have – surfaced until now, mourning the final vestiges of the deepest human intimacy I had ever known.

    And I’m struggling with it.

    Cast your cares on the LORD
    and he will sustain you;
    he will never let the righteous fall.

    Psalm 55:22 (NIV)

    Surely God is my help;
    the Lord is the one who sustains me.

    Psalm 54:4 (NIV)

  • OYB March 15

    Today´s reading:
    OT: Numbers 22:21-41, Numbers 23
    NT: Luke 1:57-80
    Ps: Psalm 58
    Pr: Proverbs 11:12-13

    Today´s notable verse:

    God is not a man, that he should lie,
    nor a son of man, that he should change his mind.
    Does he speak and then not act?
    Does he promise and not fulfill?

    Numbers 23:19 (NIV)

    I love this characteristic of God: if He says it, it is so; if He promises it, He will fulfill it. We cannot impose our will on God any more than Balak could compel God to curse the Israelites whom He had already blessed. No matter how many times he asked, no matter how many sacrifices he offered, no matter which of the Israelites he desired cursed – God willed that the Israelites be blessed.

    No matter whether the general, unconditional revelation and promises of Scripture (logos), or personal, conditional words of prophecy (rhema), we can trust without any doubt whatsoever that what God promised will come to pass. (This space is too limited to get into the difference between the unconditional Word of Scripture, and words of prophecy contingent upon their conformance with and our own obedience to the Word of Scripture.) Thank God for His faithfulness and trustworthiness!

    The One Year Bible Blog asks:

    What verses or insights jumped out for you in today’s readings?

    For once, Mike and I focused on different verses!

  • Four Things Meme – a Fortnight Late

    So, I didn’t realize until today that I was tagged with the Four Things meme…

    Four jobs I’ve had:

    1. Validation Specialist
    2. Controls Engineer
    3. Engineering Intern
    4. Line Cook

    Four movies I watch over and over again:

    1. Office Space
    2. Dead Poet’s Society
    3. Remember The Titans
    4. Lord of the Rings trilogy

    Four places I’ve lived:

    1. St. Louis, MO
    2. Kalamazoo, MI
    3. Terre Haute, IN
    4. Shelbyville, IN

    Four shows I watch:

    1. (I really don’t watch TV…)

    Four places I’ve vacationed:

    1. Hilton Head, SC
    2. Naples, FL
    3. Gatlinburg, TN
    4. New Orleans, LA

    Four websites I like: (by no means a complete list)

    1. DadBloggers
    2. This Blog is Full of Crap
    3. One Year Bible Blog
    4. LSB’s Fantasy Fiction For Christians

    Four of my favorite foods:

    1. Filet Mignon
    2. Salad
    3. Coffee
    4. anything spicy

    Four places I’d like to be right now:

    1. on a tennis court
    2. in Mexico
    3. in a home I own
    4. with my future wife (whomever she may be) and children

    Apparently, I’m supposed to pass this meme on… do I even have enough readers to recognize that I’ve tagged one of them? How about I make this one an “open tag” meme – if you decide to tag yourself, leave a comment or trackback, and let me know!

  • OYB March 14

    Today´s reading:
    OT: Numbers 21, Numbers 22:1-20
    NT: Luke 1:26-56
    Ps: Psalm 57
    Pr: Proverbs 11:9-11

    Today´s notable verses:

    That is why the Book of the Wars of the LORD says…

    Numbers 21:14 (NIV)

    What is the Book of the Wars of the Lord? From Wikipedia:

    The Book of the wars of The Lord, or The Book of the wars of Yahweh, is one of several books referenced in the Hebrew Bible, of which no copies are known to exist. It is mentioned in Numbers 21:14-15, (verses 13-15)… Amongst academics, it is generally thought to be a collection of victory songs/poems, although some non-academics have proposed it may be a prose military history.

    The Book of the Wars of the Lord is only one of a few “lost” works we will encounter this year.

    Israel captured all the cities of the Amorites and occupied them, including Heshbon and all its surrounding settlements.

    Numbers 21:25 (NIV)

    The Israelites occupied the erstwhile Amorite cities, and settled there. Was this settlement permanent – did some of the Israelites never enter the promised land – or was it temporary – only until the assembly moved on?

    The One Year Bible Blog asks:

    Proverbs chapter 11 verse 11 is a great reminder to each of us to be good citizens – “Upright citizens bless a city and make it prosper.” Are you striving to be an upright citizen blessing your city and helping to make it prosper?

    Reading this verse, I was struck by how part of our witness of Christ is that our cities – our communities – are to be blessed through us. This blessing is to be especially in contrast to the curse that the wicked bring to a city/community. I wonder how often the body of Christ is recognized – or, worse, even recognizable – as a blessing to our community? This thought is certainly sobering. I pray that God would use His church to bless the cities in which His believers live – starting with me!

  • Carnival of the Cats #103

    This week’s Carnival of the Cats is hosted this week by Justin’s Random Thoughts, assisted by the apparently xenophilic Bruiser. I am, of course, included. How could I not be?