Is God Here, There or Anywhere?

Have you ever felt like God was gone on vacation? Or just not alive; like He may have tripped over a cloud and fell and hit His head on a mountain and perished?

If you are human (and honest) you probably have. If not then you might want to stop reading my blog and find the blog called “little Christian perfect people” … it’s in the same section of blogs where you’ll find stories of sightings of unicorns. I digress!

Before you think it’s blasphemy to think any negative thought of God you might want to read the Psalms … David is often spewing things that are a bitter complaint of God’s seeming absence from life. Saying things like, “my God my God why have you forsaken me?” (Ps. 22:1) which is a shockingly honest confession of the experience of godlessness and godforsakenness in a suffering world.

Yet even in David’s songs (Psalms) you read (after he has given full vent to his frustrations, anger and pain of the seeming silence, absence and hiddenness of God in his experience) he remember what God had done in his own past. Like when he says, “I will call to mind the deeds of the Lord; I will remember your wonders of old.” (Ps.77:5,11)

David remembering the times God was a very present help in a time of trouble, and when He did answer prayers, and He did act to help and save.

Remembering the past victories gives us a hope for the future.

Let’s face it - this world is still broken, we are still broken and full of all kinds of evil … we are motivated by fear, guilt and shame… we need Jesus to give us hope (something to strive for… something to pursue and imitate … to save us from ourselves)…

To answer the question in the title – YES HE IS!

Twilight

The Twilight book series by Stephenie Meyer is crazy popular right now. I have not read the books, nor have I seen the movie ... but I am okay with that since I am a 40 year guy and the book seems to be reaching a female audience ages 13 and up .

Trust me, this is no book review … but I find it intriguing because what I have heard from readers (most every female I know) about Twilight makes total sense WHY it’s so popular; it has within its pages what every human desires down deep; Love (true love that is … love that doesn’t just got for what it desires or hungers for, in Edwards case – human blood … but a love that thinks of the other person … a self-less love … a love that is so completely opposite from what we see in our current culture. Love with restraint. Crazy passionate deep heart-pounding love … the kind of love that gives you goose bumps all over! It’s lacking in the world today!)

From what little I know the book Twilight is basically the story of Edward and Bella’s romance. Edward is a Vampire, but has chosen to only feed on the blood of animals. Of course Bella is a human … anyway if you like a good romance novel this is a must-read series from what I have heard. Check it out!

1 Cor. 13

Bible Reading Plan - Week One

Happy New Year! I am hopeful that this year is already going better than last year … or at least “our perspective” is better!

I am confident that the practice of “goal setting” is an important part of a successful living. And typically Christians will have on their “list” of New Years Resolutions to read through the Bible … but often get bogged down when they hit the book of Leviticus which is full of Laws and stuff that isn’t so interesting to many of us. So I thought we could do a "read through the Bible" a little different this year … interested? Read on!

I would like to take a trip with you through the most famous and well-read book of all time - The Bible. I have picked a plan that reads in chronological order, which is worked out in date order, as the books were written. Though this list isn't guaranteed to be exact, many theologians have agreed on this order. I think it will be fun to read the events of the Bible as they occurred chronologically. For example, the Book of Job is integrated with Genesis because Job lived before Abraham.

God bless!

January 1
Genesis 1-3


January 2
Genesis 4-7


January 3
Genesis 8-11


January 4
Job 1-5


January 5
Job 6-9


January 6
Job 10-13


January 7
Job 14-16