Marching Forth!

The world for some time has been operating under the illusion that lasting peace is just beyond our grasp.  The generation which saw the end of the Cold War, the fall of the Berlin wall, and sang along with "We Are the World" had bright hopes for the future.  The self-esteem movement, the tackling of social issues like illiteracy, world hunger, poverty, and campaigns to promote safe-sex, end racism, bullying, drug abuse, human trafficking, and domestic violence worked to make a difference.  In light of the ongoing riots and looting in the United States, from a humanist perspective it seems the hope of a brighter future is in grave doubt. The protests, riots, and looting show a greater and enduring cure is needed for the ills of hearts of men.  As awful as violence and destruction is it can be compared to a sore throat and fever that finally moves a person to seek medical aid.  I pray this is a moment when despairing people turn to God instead of on each oth...

" The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: 2  shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; 3 nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; 4 and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away ." 1 Peter 5:1-4 Peter exhorted those given oversight in the Body of Christ to volunteer willingly and not to be motivated by financial gain.  It is fitting those who labour in the Word of God and sow spiritual things reap a reward according to God's gracious provision ( 1 Corinthians 9:7-11; 1 Timothy 5:17-18 ).  The opportunity for income should never, however, enter into our motive for Christian service.  If earning money is why we "serve" we are nothing more than hire...

One of the scenes I enjoy in the movie "The Great Race" (of which there are many) is when Max urged Professor Fate to rise from his backseat bed:  "Time to get up.  C'mon Professor, rise and shine!"  The grumpy and likely hungover Professor shouted, "Rise and shine?"  "It's 7:30," Max calmly replied.  "Then you rise and you shine!" bellowed the villain professor to his sidekick.  Though some of us are reluctant to leave the warmth of our beds on a cold morning, God created the sun to faithfully rise and shine.  The sun supplies light and heat according to God's design. The sun shining is a declaration of God's glory as is written in  Psalm 19:4-6 :  " Their line has gone out through all the earth, a nd their words to the end of the world. In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun, 5  which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, a nd rejoices like a strong man to run its race. 6 Its rising is fr...

Since my mum taught me to bake as a child, I have enjoyed making tasty treats to share.  With the rise of the internet it has allowed me to branch out from my trusty Betty Crocker Cookbook and learn to make an array of balanced meals and deserts.  My personal method regarding new recipes is two-fold:  the first time follow the recipe as precisely as possible before making any adjustments, and the second is always try out a recipe before serving it to guests.  Even if I suspect there is too much of one ingredient or not enough of another, I find it necessary to establish a baseline according to the actual recipe so I can know if I have found a keeper or should move on. One of the greatest compliments as a casual baker is when someone enjoys my offering enough to ask for the recipe.  I have benefited greatly from people sharing recipes with me so I am happy to freely share the love.  Some of the best recipes I have my mother was given by an old lady down ...

" Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, 11  searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. 12  To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven--things which angels desire to look into ." 1 Peter 1:10-12 We can have this idea those who have received revelation from God have all the answers or insight, but these verses paint a different picture.  Through the prophets in the Old Testament God revealed the Messiah would suffer and it puzzled the prophets who received this divine revelation.  Under the heavy yoke of the Law of Moses the grace of the Gospel was preached yet not unders...

Recently I was impressed by the amount of consideration and detail which goes into the customising of a Rolls Royce automobile.  According to a video by Business Insider, there are 44,000 colour options and your customised colour becomes your own.  Expertly handcrafted inside and out, a Rolls Royce is a luxury ride just over 5,000 people purchase a year.  One person had the dashboard to reflect their DNA, and another decided the fibre-optic lighting in the "starline headliner" to match a constellation of stars on the day he was born.  The video went into the effort made to make the stitching of letters and images of roses pop. When I watched this video, what I found more impressive than the cost of a Rolls Royce was the thought, engineering, and effort put into building a car that reflects the owner.  I can't help but turn my thoughts to the Creator of the universe man can only copy:  God is the One who put DNA in every living cell of our bodies, the O...

One letter can make a huge difference in the meaning of a Bible passage.  If I read the New Testament in Greek there would be little chance of confusing "work" with "word."  I don't always wear my glasses (and maybe I should!) when I read but "ergon" looks nothing like "logos."  While I have been guilty of finishing God's sentences in the past, sometimes I have also been guilty of skimming through scripture instead of carefully reading each word.  When we do this we literally don't realise all the revelation from God we missed. But praise the LORD, even without wearing my glasses I came upon a passage I have mis-read in times past.  I looked it up in another Bible just to make sure it wasn't a typo!   James 1:21-25 says, " Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word , which is able to save your souls. 22  But be doers of the word , and not hearers only, dec...