One year alone, has it been just that?
Since she happily gave back her tent.
Not that she was ever ungrateful,
Though, if anyone, she might've had that right.

Betrayed by body and temperament,
By family and man, but never by God.
To those who cared, she was Bounceback Queen,
But Jesus named her, daughter of I Am.

Unloved, unwanted by the woman who bore her,
A new family waited to give her God's love.
Earthly father and mother, thanked God for small blessing,
Furnished the love she needed to grow.

God gave and took away to shape little Nancy,
Into the daughter He made her to be.
Strong, some say willful, but in God's timeless view,
Not more than she needed to meet life's trials.

Further abandonment by the one God gave
To be with her one flesh, and Christ’s head.
Left Nancy to prove faithful, unaided, but able,
To fill the role, single mother of two.

Empty nest nearly killed her; adrift and sick,
She made her mistakes, believing grief’s lies.
Needy, defenseless, relationships came.
Selfish men took advantage, and left but a shell.

Through all of this, God’s perfect plan moved;
He showed His ways strange indeed,
Taking two needy people, and changing them both,
To one He gave trust, to the other, taught love.

One year has now passed since God took what He gave,
A solitary year of reflection and trust.
A year to learn who I am without Nancy
Depending on me to help lighten her load.

As Nancy once sought her Rudder when left
Adrift on life's undulating sea,
Even now, sailing through dense fog of night,
I search for the Bright, Morning Star.

As Captain directs my way through the mist,
Bidding me sail not by sight, but faith,
My way seems elusive, my circumstance strange,
Green water fights headway as I steer on the Light.

Though my course is unsteady, and I'm shipping water,
My sail tattered by ever present gale,
Yet, my Savior comes to me as to disciples of old,
And will utter his blessing, "Peace, be still."

Marching Orders

War isn't a popular subject among those who've really been there. But when the sounds and smells of battle are in the air, and they're headed your way, you need to be prepared.

Marching Orders

Great Idea

Again, T. M. Moore of The Colson Center made several important observations in his article, Resist the Spirit of the Age.

He began with an understatement of amusing magnitude: To their contemporaries, the first Christians were a most peculiar breed. Then, throughout the rest of the article he presses the issue of how such peculiarity must also characterize today’s Christ-followers.

As in their day, so in ours, the Kingdom of God, by the Light of the Gospel, is making headway against the darkness of unbelief and sin (1 Jn. 2:8, 17). I must confess that Moore’s analysis seems, on the surface, quite optimistic. Yet, he supports his observation with Scripture.

All our ethical behavior will be grounded in “This is what the Lord says” and not whatever the temper of the times dictates or allows. And we will fill our minds only with what is holy and pure and decent and good. Today’s seductive, popular culture conspires against Christ-followers who see the need for such careful thought and appetite control, yet, Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. (Philippians 4:8) That's a command, not a suggestion. Such an elevated thought-pattern forms our strongest defense against creeping worldliness, which is one of the enemy’s most well-honed weapons.

Romans 12:1-2 is one of the best-known Scripture passages for those who long to live the Biblical worldview: I appeal to you therefore, brothers,^[a] by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.^{[b] 2} Do not be conformed to this world,^[c] but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. That, in itself, is material for a whole series of messages.

Education Misdirection

This is why America's schools lag so badly behind all other developed nations:



We worry about Internet connection speed in our schools, rather than giving kids the fundamental tools to grasp the math and science that enables us to compete in the global marketplace.

More Hollywood Bias

    Subject: Bones, Season 5 Episode 4. Investigating a suburban murder, agent Booth and Dr. Brennan question a gay couple who demonstrate conventional marriage affection, and conventional marriage bickering, after one of the neighbors justifies gay marriage in answer to an obviously conservative neighbor’s challenge. Then a church lady refuses spiked punch, but later admits an affair with the gardener. Finally, a devout Muslim intern demonstrates how peaceful and reasonable Islam really is.

      In the same program, the producers justify gay marriage as a reasonable alternative lifestyle, then reveal a Christian’s hypocrisy and a Muslim’s sincerity. What’s wrong with this Hollywood picture?

Calvinism: Sovereignty, or Sophistry?

Calvin contended that not a wind blows, not a drop of rain falls, without the express command of God. "He so regulates all things," Calvin wrote, "that nothing takes place without His deliberation."
      Calvinism teaches, among other things, absolute divine sovereignty, as John Calvin expressed in the above quote. All else that Calvinism contends flows from this teaching.
      Without getting deeply into the Calvinist TULIP, (Total depravity, Unconditional election, Limited atonement, Irresistible grace, and Perseverance of the saints), one fault of that teaching stands out conspicuously: Without maintaining a precarious, logical balance, one can too easily tip over the edge into a fatalistic conclusion. I can’t say how many times I’ve allowed the enemy to use Calvinistic teaching to trap me into self-condemnation, even though the Bible says, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1 ESV)
      Problem is, Satan counters even that wonderful truth with a spurious argument (Imagine it spoken with a pronounced hiss): “But how do you know you are in him? Are you acting like a Christian? Thinking like a Christian? Admit it, you are full of doubts!” The solution is to respond to him like Jesus did: Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’” (Matthew 4:10 ESV)

Real Assurance of Salvation

Apostle Paul answered the enemy’s challenge: The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. (Romans 8:16-17 ESV)
      So, how do we suffer with Jesus? First, by fighting the temptation to doubt. Everyone, even Jesus, had doubts. And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” (Matthew 26:39 ESV) And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” (Luke 22:41-42 ESV)
      Second, by standing with Christ in spite of social disapproval. As long as our religion is loving, and not dogmatic or sanctimonious, no one has valid reason for putting us down. And if it is those things, we will likely be so self-assured that we won’t entertain doubts to begin with.
      Third, by keeping our personal priorities in line with Christ’s. So let no one boast in men. For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future--all are yours, and you are Christ's, and Christ is God's. (1 Corinthians 3:21-23 ESV) So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. (1 Corinthians 10:31 ESV)
      Fourth, by dying to self. And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” (Luke 9:23 ESV) To Jesus, his cross was both his curse and his means of death. To obey Jesus’ command, we will have to endure the curses of the world and die to ourselves. Apostle Paul dealt with this principle in his letter to the Roman church:

Romans 6:1-11 ESV

(1) What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?

(2) By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?

(3) Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?

(4) We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

(5) For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.

(6) We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.

(7) For one who has died has been set free from sin.

(8) Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.

(9) We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him.

(10) For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God.

(11) So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

This passage is hard to grasp. With our natural view of death as being something final and corrupt, it obstructs our grasp of Christ’s substitutional death for us, and our proper response of dying to sin that we might live with him. Romans chapter six is one of those Scripture passages that, if we truly want to live for Christ, we must study and meditate on until we make its truth an integral part of ourselves.

Giving Calvin His Due

Calvinists, by and large, handle Scripture with tender loving care, with no attempt at deception as I've implied in this writing’s title. If not delivered with the same TLC, though, its message can lead sophomoric believers to one of two tragically wrong conclusions: They can fall prey to Satan’s condemnation, or they can gain an unwarranted assurance of salvation despite continuing in sin. John Calvin would come out of his grave screaming bloody murder if he could see the number of people captured by either deception.

      Well-meant deception, however, can’t be laid exclusively at Calvinism’s doorstep. The other side of the theological coin, Arminianism, can be misapplied just as badly. But that’s grist for another grind.

Pentecostal Snake-Handlers

But he answered them, "An evil and adulterous gener-ation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah." (Matthew 12:39 ESV)

  I lump religious snake-handlers into the vast subset of Christ-followers who covet sign gifts, as if simple faith and trust aren't enough. While Jesus and his followers produced signs to verify their authority, the signs he commanded us to produce are spiritual fruit, not spiritual gifts. Preoccupation with "sign gifts" smacks of carnal pride.

   When I realized the apostate nature of my native, Catholic church, I became skeptical of everything that claimed to be "Christian," and found an alarming body of evangelical teachings that hearkened back to Romanist roots. Even our cherished, Trinitarian teachings originated in Rome, which has caused my reexamination of God's fundamental nature.

   That said, I absolutely believe the eternal, self-existent Word of God, who spoke the universe into existence and established the means of communicating with his creation, is willing and able to provide us with the portion of his truth that is relevant to our temporal frame of reference. His willingness and ability to convey his truth to us, however, does not guarantee our willingness and ability to receive it. As saturation of toxic elements in our bodies blocks absorption of essential nutrients, so intellectual and spiritual error blocks our absorption of the eternal, self-existent One's truth.

   "Reason" has suffered a bum rap from Evangelical Christianity, as a rash reaction to the arbitrarily skeptical brand of reasoning employed by atheists. Carefully choosing the right words to communicate and defend God's good news requires the highest level of reasoning, and indeed, striving to do those works without careful reasoning produces the kind of childish dogmatism that invites attack by free thinkers.

   Personally, I must maintain a critical overview of my own interpretations of God's word. Even if I were qualified to exegete Scripture, I would have no authority to stand dogmatically upon my own conclusions as if they were holy writ.

Entitlements and Other Hogslop

      I haven't given up yet. I still plan to watch the rest of the Presidential Debate, even if I have to hold my nose through it. For these few months, we can forget about trivial issues such as our Constitutional Freedoms and truth in the public arena, as that's all consumed by political rhetoric.
      Both sides of the political aisle placate whatever interest groups they think will benefit them the most come November, remembering, of course, to give lip service to their voter base. Politicians and lawyers share one character trait: We know they are lying when we see their lips are moving. And when the politicians are lawyers?
      Despite all that political hogslop, we need to attend to the business of protecting our Constitution from the powers of self-interest. Pseudo-constitutional hot-buttons such as "reproductive rights," "jobs," "gay rights," "freedom from religion," "gun control," and, "income redistribution" are little more than entitlements that politicians promise with crossed fingers, simply to perpetuate, their lucrative reign of power.
      Our Founding Fathers never intended for the United States to be run by professional politicians, and predicted exactly the sort of abuses that are common today if the Biblical morality they cherished were to be abandoned. Yes, they were idealists, but their ideals made America great, and denying that fact is nothing less than rewriting our history.

More Thoughts About Atheism

      Lately I've found Facebook and YouTube comments dominated by vehement atheistic sentiment focused not at deists, theists, Jews or Muslims, but directly and hatefully at Christians, and I find that curious. Theocracy paranoia peppers these public forums with demands for “Freedom from religion,” and worries about Christian fundamentalist terrorism perpetrated on poor, innocent children who are indoctrinated with Biblical values in Christian homes. Given their way, these secularists would outlaw all religious expression, public or private, and establish their own atheocracy. Thing is, they needn’t go to all that trouble, when they can just move to Communist China and enjoy their atheistic society.

      Atheist claims of openness, free and rational thinking, etc., dissolve like Styrofoam in acetone when they flame Christians with labels ranging from “stupid” to “inbred” to “retard” to “terrorist.” If they are all that passionate, why do they not invest more time in reasonably refuting the opposition, than name-calling? Even those few who offer some rationale for their non-belief seem to be stuck on clichés, rather than concentrating on original thought. Lord knows, atheists have a perfect right to express their thoughts in the public forum, as well as to bear the consequences should they be wrong.

      My personal faith in Christ began as a skeptic's honest inquiry, tempered by an absolute confidence in the Bible as God’s only revealed word, a highly unusual conviction for a Catholic. Because of my confidence in God’s word, I could no sooner blindly accept Catholic, or any other religious dogma—dictated by corrupt ecclesiastical systems—than buy into atheistic dogma—dictated by flawed human reason.

      Upon beholding nature's spectacular beauty and precise order, both creationist and evolutionist explanations seemed markedly hollow and patently dogmatic. The evangelical in-crowd insists on 24-hour creation days, while savvy evolutionists believe the universe created itself. Both propositions require incredible faith, and adherents cling to them with religious fervor. For creationists, that's understandable, but for atheists?

      By their behavior, both sides have eliminated any question as to which has the truth. Their mutual mudslinging tells me both are deceived. The only alternative I have found worthy of pursuing is the only Jewish messiah who fully satisfied all Scriptural prophesy concerning himself, having performed historically verified, unique signs and wonders, proving to unbiased inquirers that he is God’s only Son after his own kind. Jesus of Nazareth lived perfectly, died cruelly, and rose from the dead, not to establish a religion. He did all that to buy back from the enemy of our souls, a faithful remnant, willing to accept God’s love and to love him in return, through their conformity to his righteous example. In contrast to all human religions, in Jesus there is no hatred, bigotry, or cruelty, but only love for his entire creation.

      In view of religion’s track record, I cannot fault atheists for their skepticism, but I do fault them, and human religion’s followers, for their imperious belief that they know all, and that anything outside of their understanding is patently false.

What Is Good?

 John 1:1-3 ESV

1. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2. He was in the beginning with God.
3. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.

      One might wonder what all that has to do with good. That’s an easy one: And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. Genesis 1:31 (ESV) And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone, Mark 10:18 (ESV) which is why his creation is good.
      As Mankind was the culmination of God’s creation, we were naturally included when God said, “It’s all good.” And as long as his creation was intact, it remained good. So, from God’s perspective, we are good when we live the way he created us to live.
      Oh, how the standard for “good” has declined. Now, when something pleases us for any reason, we declare it “good,” and we’re not at all discriminating.

2 Corinthians 5:10 (NASB) For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

      But living any other way is sin. That’s why apostle Paul wrote, Romans 3:23 (ESV) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. That idea wasn’t original with him, though. Paul simply summed up the body of Scripture, as human depravity is one of its major themes, as are God’s mercy and justice.

      An observant farmer might say, “Wait a dad-burned minute. That stool don’t stand!” Human reason balks at those three principles when we try to understand how they can coexist. How can God deal justly with disobedient mankind, and still show mercy? Does he sentence us to community service, as do today’s judges? Hardly, as that’s neither justice nor mercy. If God is indeed both just and merciful, he seems to have painted himself into a corner by creating humanity so we could sin.

What in the world was God thinking?

      Discerning God’s ways is indeed a hard thing. Again, we look to apostle Paul for insight: 1 Corinthians 2:14 (NASB) But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. And where did he get that idea? Isaiah 55:8-9 (NASB) "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," declares the LORD. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.
      From the outset, God planned for all these eventualities. Some folks think of God’s Plan of Salvation as a Jesus thing, or just a gospel tract, but that’s selling God way short. In fact, all of history is his plan of salvation, from creation to humanity’s fall, from the horrible things mankind does to one another to his church’s work today; nothing takes God by surprise! If we can’t see a connection between mankind’s cruelty and God’s mercy, so what? We don’t even know which heartbeat will be our last, but God does. As movie spies say, “We’re on a need to know basis,” and all we need to know is what he tells us through his word. Oh, sure, some people claim special knowledge or a new revelation and get folks all riled up, but they’re full of it, and “it” isn’t God.

What in the world is God doing?

      Short of studying, in depth, all of God’s word and all of human history, there are a few things we can take to the bank: Remember the apparent conflict between God’s mercy and justice, and Man’s depravity? As God made us for fellowship with himself, he necessarily shared with us some of his divine attributes so we could relate to him, and he to us. One of those attributes is free will.

      God’s eternal Word knew, when he began creation, that Man would abuse that divine gift of free will to sell out to the lowest bidder. God even knew that he, in Christ Jesus, would have to pay the ultimate price to buy us back from Satan.

      Admittedly, this seems like a roundabout process when God could have just prevented the whole sin thing, but as his incredible gift of free will made sin inevitable, eliminating it simply wasn’t an option. Instead, by refusing to coerce us into obedience, but allowing us to sin, all the while knowing how he would deal both justly and mercifully with us, God proves to us how wonderful is his love for us.

Old Testament Law—Spiritual Nanny

      The most misunderstood concept in the Bible is the relationship between law and grace. On one side of the issue are believers who insist that we must obey at least part of Old Testament law, and then God will love us, and Jesus will give us his grace-pass into heaven. Then there are the believers who embrace God’s loving grace as the cure for all but humanity’s worst transgressions. The one side says, “God’s Ten Commandments are not Ten Suggestions.” The other says, “Just believe in God and be nice to your neighbors, and St. Peter will open wide those pearly gates.”

      Both of those persuasions ignore God’s truth, revealed in his word. God’s law is both the Old Testament and the New Testament, even if they seem to proclaim contradictory messages.

Apostle Paul distilled this complex truth into just four Bible verses:

Galatians 3:23-26 (ESV) Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. (24) So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. (25) But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, (26) for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.

      That’s a nutshell that encloses a big part of God’s infinite truth. It tells us why God instituted his law, who(Christ Jesus) and what(faith) fulfills the law, and who we become through faith in Christ Jesus. It’s not simply a “That was then, this is now” type of thing, because God’s law still applies to those who are not yet sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

Let’s backtrack for perspective

Galatians 3:5-14 (ESV) Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith-- (6) just as Abraham "believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness"? (7) Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. (8) And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, "In you shall all the nations be blessed." (9) So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith. (10) For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, "Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them." (11) Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for "The righteous shall live by faith." (12) But the law is not of faith, rather "The one who does them shall live by them." (13) Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us--for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree"-- (14) so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.

      In verse five we can see the apostle wrote this to a group of believers who were a bit confused about the law-versus-faith issue. So we shouldn’t feel slow if we can’t seem to grasp the concept.

      Verse six gives us a role-model for faith. Apostle Paul quoted Genesis 15:6 to establish faith’s part in Abraham’s righteousness before God.

      Verse seven takes the idea one step further. The author establishes our identity as “sons of Abraham,” or honorary Hebrews, through faith.

      Verse eight takes a flying leap, at least where the Jews are concerned. He uses Genesis 12:3 as the basis for his claim that all peoples, not just God’s chosen Hebrews, are qualified for justification by faith.

      As verse nine just restates that fact, let’s jump to verse ten, where he wades into even deeper water. Here he slaps the religious Jews—and all who depend on the law for justification—sharply on their pride, by openly declaring they are under a curse because they can’t keep the whole law.

      Verse eleven brings in another Old Testament passage, Habakkuk 2:4, and yes, there was such a prophet. Using that passage, Paul says the fact that the law cannot justify anyone is evident, meaning anyone who has half a brain should see it.
      Verse twelve pushes the two-edged sword even deeper, with a quote from Leviticus 18:5. Now we see that “the law is not of faith,” explaining why those who lived by the law could never be fully justified by it.
      Till now, Paul has talked a lot about faith, but he wasn’t specific as to that faith’s object. With verse thirteen he ties up that loose end by saying plainly, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us.” (Deuteronomy 21:23) What a powerful declaration!

      Verse fourteen continues that thought, tying up the faith-gift of God with a beautiful bow.

      So, to answer the title question, we are good when we live as God originally intended.