Marching Forth!

I appreciate the perspective and insight of G.K. Chesterton who masterfully communicated in an intellectually stimulating and satisfying way how mankind's existence reveals the reality of a God Who created man and everything else.  In response to cave paintings Chesterton claimed, " Art is the signature of man " and if this is true, then mankind is indeed the signature of God who created artists of every kind.  The biblical account of Genesis says God created mankind unique from all other creatures in His own image, and thus accounts for the vast difference between people and animals.  Chesterton wrote: " The simplest truth about man is that he is a very strange being; almost in the sense of being a stranger on the earth.  In all sobriety, he has much more of the external appearance of one bringing alien habits from another land than of a mere growth of this one.  He has an unfair advantage and an unfair disadvantage.  He cannot sleep in his own skin; he ca...

" I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.  2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God ." Romans 12:1-2 God can do what no one else can:  change us and keep changing us for good.  These verses provided an "Aha!" moment for me as I considered how God transforms us when we are born again and our need to continue to be transformed.  When I was a kid, "Transformers" were a very cool toy marketed as "Robots in Disguise."  What appeared to be a tank, truck or car could be "transformed" into a formidable robot.  It fits the definition of transformation of a marked change, but Optimus Prime and Bumblebee were simply wearing clever disguises.  They were really extraterrestrial robots that could ta...

The heading of my Bible of Psalm 142 attributes it to David with this description:  " A prayer when he was in the cave ."  When King Saul's murderous intentions were revealed through his pursuit of David and the killing of the priests at Nob, David was forced into hiding.  It seemed wherever he turned his whereabouts were reported to Saul who was never far behind.  Though David had hundreds of men who followed him, they were nothing compared to the thousands of mighty men that attended King Saul.  Even in the cave it was evident his trust remained steadfast in God who was his true refuge. Psalm 142:4-5 reads, " Look on my right hand and see, f or there is no one who acknowledges me;  r efuge has failed me;  n o one cares for my soul.  5 I cried out to You, O LORD : I said, "You are my refuge,  m y portion in the land of the living ."  David felt alone in his troubles, but he knew he was not alone.  In the dark recesses o...

As people we make an effort to present ourselves well when we stand to benefit.  A prospective employee ensures they look fit for the role when attending a job interview, and before a first date people want to look and smell their best.  Before going to a high tea, wedding or funeral we wear attire appropriate for the occasion.  When I worked in construction I was always amazed by the uniform transformation during the annual Christmas party of men who usually wore jeans and cotton shirts besotted with mastic to wearing custom suits and silk ties.  With wives and partners coming along the language cleaned up dramatically as well.  For a night we could have fooled some we were actually a civilised and well-mannered crew.  Go into the shop on Monday morning, however, and a completely different side of the boys would be revealed. It is likely this same hypocrisy exists at some level in various areas in the lives of every person.  From our childhood we hav...