Marching Forth!

I've been thinking lately about the parable Jesus told about the "Good Samaritan."  When tested by a man who sought to justify himself by asking, "Who is my neighbor?" Jesus told a story about a man traveling the road to Jericho who fell among thieves.  He was beaten, robbed, stripped, and left for dead.  A priest who walked by ignored his plight, as well as a Levite who passed by on the other side.  It was the Samaritan, a man hailing from a group of people despised by the Jews, who showed compassion on the man when he stopped, lifted him from the ground, anointed his wounds, and took him to an inn so he might recover - all at his own expense. Perhaps it is more ironic still that Christ alludes to Himself through the care of the foreign Samaritan who helped the wounded man.  Jesus has done for us far more than the Samaritan in the story did for the wounded man.  Jesus was despised and rejected by His own.  He revealed love and compassion for all peo...

" Then Joshua said to the children of Israel: "How long will you neglect to go and possess the land which the LORD God of your fathers has given you ?" Joshua 18:3 God had brought the children of Israel out of Egypt, through the wilderness, and into the Land of Promise.  He also provided victory as the people drove out the inhabitants of the land.  The tabernacle had been set up in Shiloh, and the land was subdued before the people.  But a point came when 7 of the 12 tribes had not yet entered the land God intended His people to dwell in as their inheritance.  Joshua rebuked the people for their slackness.  The words of Joshua in verse 3 in the KJV read, " How long are ye slack to go to possess the land, which the LORD God of your fathers hath given you ?"  The word "slack" in the Hebrew means, " abate, cease, fail, wax feeble, forsake, idle, let alone ."  Once the people became established in the land, they seemed to lose the moti...

Long before I became a resident of Australia, there has been an ongoing debate concerning how to handle the boats of refugees and "asylum seekers."  There are differences between these groups, though the terms are often used interchangeably.  Similar to where I lived previously in Southern California where drug trafficking and people smuggling are ongoing issues, the position of Australia provides unique challenges.  Having little practical knowledge of the conditions which have evolved over the decades to bring us to this point, I have no unique insight or authority to even suggest a solution.  It seems unlikely that a single action or policy will make the "problem" of people smuggling go away.  Even this term is a misnomer, because these profiteering smugglers are the ones who are bringing desperate refugees or asylum seekers.  Those who feel they have no where else to flee will do anything to save themselves, their family, and seek a future in Australi...

The tendency in all people is to look to the wrong things for salvation.  Even people of faith in God can be duped at times into placing too much trust in things and people other than God.  The illustration in the life of Peter on the Sea of Galilee when he took his eyes off Christ, overwhelmed by the storm's wind and waves, is a fitting one.  Whether I read the news from my home State of California, or watch debates and news concerning the approaching election in Australia, the focus is on the same sort of things:  economics, health care, and social justice issues.  The expectation on the government to "fix things" is misplaced, seeing the government has had much influence to bring us to where we are.  You might as well shout at a lost man with a megaphone and demand he find his way without a map or have 100 million people sign a petition if you want - but that will not bring his wandering to an end. C.S. Lewis wrote, " If tribulation is a necessary elem...