Now I don't want to get off on a rant here...

A Day of Rest

Thank the Lord for grace. That is something far too often we are unwilling to show others and too willing to show ourselves. I am ever so thankful that I am not in charge of doling out grace to the world and the wisdom required for such a task has been appointed to Jesus Christ.

That being said, yesterday I rested in His proportion of grace for my wife and me. A typical “day of rest” for us is spent at church – Sunday School, Worship Service, Fellowship, Small Group Bible Study. Sometimes it doesn’t seem like a day of rest at all, but we are called to set the day aside as a day of worship, community with God’s people and of course RESTING. It is that last part that at least for us that seems to get lost at times. Yesterday, we didn’t go to church. We didn’t go to any bible studies. We didn’t spend time talking with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

We spent the day enjoying the rich fellowship of our marriage relationship, we spent the day truly setting it aside as a day of rest and we spent the day worshiping our God by looking into His word. At first we were both on the edge of feeling overcome by guilt for not being in church. This longing to be there is a good thing and not attending should be a rare occasion indeed. But at the end of the day I felt like we had shown our love for the Lord, we had shown our love for each other and we rested in the sweet communion of the grace of Jesus Christ.

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart…

Everyone has their various struggles in life and we can tend to search out route causes. If we can discover those route causes then perhaps we can get beyond this struggle or at least understand it better. Sometimes we search for the source looking to relieve ourselves of the personal responsibility and blame shift.

My struggles tend to rear their heads in the way of anger. When I get angry I can easily say things I don’t mean or simply shut off completely. Many things lead, cause, tempt me to anger that I am very good at pointing at to absolve myself of the blame. Not all anger is bad because there is such thing as righteous anger, but we should not ruled by it or always justify our situation as righteous anger, no matter how tempting that is.

Lately I have been struggling with people disrespecting the deepest personal relationship that I have. It is not me actually being called out for having this relationship, but when people show their contempt for the person I have this relationship with it makes me angry. I have a deep love for all those that are in my life – my wife, family, friends, and when someone hurts one of those people I want seek justice.

The deepest relationship I have in my life though is with El-Shaddai, God Almighty; He is my Rock, my Redeemer, my Savior, and my Lord. There are those that I encounter on a daily basis – at work, on the radio, on blogs that either don’t know God at all or only know things about Him. This saddens my heart, yet it also fuels my desire to see those that show their contempt be confronted with the genuineness of our Creator.

To find peace, to be confronted myself with His awe inspiring word and to trust in His majesty; I rest on this Psalm of David.

Psalm 19:14
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

Having my heart and my words conformed to that of my Creator I am able to rest in the enormousness of God. Those that know not the one that makes their life possible cannot diminish the glory of His creation. My hope is that just as I know God loves me despite the person that I am, they too can know the God of forgiveness, of grace, and yes, of justice.

Remote Control

Remote Controls are more than just a lazy man’s way of changing the channel. They are even more than popular game shows based on useless TV knowledge, which by the way has infected my head. They just make life easier and put the fate of our entertainment enjoyment in the palm of our hands. But could they have other uses??

I was recently talking to a friend going through a tough time with some very hard decisions to make. I mentioned that sometimes I wish life had a remote control, so when times were tough we could just hit FAST FORWARD. That way we would be past the turmoil and be onto enjoying the lessons learned. Or better yet, hit REWIND to go back and fix the problems that led to the current feeling of turmoil. Sometimes we could hit PAUSE to make those moments of immense pleasure and joy last as long as we wanted. And still other times when we just needed a break for a little while, we could STOP everything and PLAY when we were ready.

Unfortunately that is not a part of God’s plan for any of us. He reminds us of His sovereignty and our need to surrender this type of control. It is both comforting and confronting at the same time. We can seek and find rest in God’s love for us as we understand His plans and purposes. Yet we are also uneasy at the idea of facing the uncertainty the future holds. The balance is difficult. Complacency versus Broadening Horizons. We need to be ready to stretch and grow when God calls us, but we must also find His perfect peace, His perfect contentment in all situations.

The Apostle Paul encourages us on this very point, “Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4: 11-13).” Our remote control for life is found in contentment through our Savior, Jesus Christ. He both nourishes us for the time being and pushes us to hunger for more.

United Nations Reformation Potential

There is a reformation underway at the United Nations and the US finally has a voice to be a part of that discussion. Reform is needed to combat the loss of a vital asset: “the perception that [the UN] is relevant to the challenges confronting the international community”. There is a “credibility gap between the responsibilities associated with it by the international community and what the organization does and is actually capable of doing in practice.” It is difficult to be a relevant voice on the world stage if you are incapable of acting effectively on the very things you hold up as mission critical.

This hasn’t always been the case though. Chris Wallace argues in his book “Character: Profiles in Presidential Courage” that if the predecessor to the UN, the League of Nations, would have come to fruition that WWII could have been avoided. Just the same, UN advocates appeal to “the calming presence [that] kept the world sane and safe from the unspeakable horrors of a World War III” during the Cold War. Advocates continue, as it is the “only extant forum for talking over our problems instead of fighting over them.” Clearly the United Nations has served a purpose and been a positive influence in the world in the 60 years it has been around.

Where are they now?
Even advocates admit, “[t]here is plenty to complain about at the United Nations...” and they are a “group of wildly different and extremely self-interested representatives”. “The United Nations could certainly be improved…To make the institution better, the Bush administration would first have to show that it has a vision of what the UN could be.”

What is that vision?
President Bush said, “[T]o advance peace and liberty and human rights…to be a source of hope and dignity and peace.” Ambassador Bolton’s mission will be “to help the U.N. reform itself to renew its founding promises for the 21st century… make it clear that America values the potential of the United Nations” to fulfill this vision.

What does this mean for the next 60 years and beyond?
I have a vision for the future as well. As I see it the promise of freedom and liberty for the world and the spread of democracy across the globe will culminate in a single world government body. This will be a true united nation with branches of government that contain an executive, legislative and judicial body. The foundations of these ideas are being laid now, but it is certainly not time for it to come to fruition.

The League of Nations, North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, United Nations, European Union, International Criminal Court, World Trade Organization, United States of America and perhaps some day the United Nations Republic to guide them all. A democratically ruled republic of every free nation in the world guided by principles of hope, peace, human rights, dignity, liberty and freedom for all.

A dream? Perhaps. A challenge? No doubt. A potential? You tell me.

SOURCES
The United Nations: Fractured
By Lisa Marchese and Rachel Simmon

Over the last few decades it has lost one of its most powerful assets: the perception that it is relevant to the challenges confronting the international community.

Like most organizations (both public and private) that face a reputation or brand crisis, the UN has a credibility gap between the responsibilities associated with it by the international community and what the organization does and is actually capable of doing in practice.

Bolton appointment a sharp poke in Congress' eye
By Jim Wright

As for the United Nations, I'd hate to think of our world without it. It is the only extant forum for talking over our problems instead of fighting over them.

There can be little doubt that throughout those long, tense years of the Cold War, the calming presence of the United Nations kept the world sane and safe from the unspeakable horrors of a World War III.

Ambassador Bolton
By Bob Herbert

There is plenty to complain about at the United Nations, but real work happens there, and it requires the services of men and women who know how to wring agreement out of a group of wildly different and extremely self-interested representatives.

The United Nations could certainly be improved…To make the institution better, the Bush administration would first have to show that it has a vision of what the UN could be.

Remarks By The President In Announcing John Bolton As Ambassador To The United Nations

As a result, America has now gone more than six months without a permanent ambassador to the United Nations. This post is too important to leave vacant any longer, especially during a war and a vital debate about U.N. reform...

Ambassador Bolton believes passionately in the goals of the United Nations Charter, to advance peace and liberty and human rights. His mission is now to help the U.N. reform itself to renew its founding promises for the 21st century…And he'll make it clear that America values the potential of the United Nations to be a source of hope and dignity and peace.

There is no God…or so I’m told

Waking up in the middle of the night to the sound of screams is almost never a good thing. Realizing once you are awake that the loud noise is emanating from inside your head only complicates the matter. You are disoriented by the reverberation of several voices shouting incoherently at once inside your ears. What is going on? Where is this shouting coming from? Am I dreaming?

Moments later the screams stop. A single billowing voice now brings everything into focus, “THERE IS NO GOD!” Then silence. Only the shadows of the room and the occasional tree branch blowing outside are left to comfort you. The fear wells up in your heart and you are paralyzed, as you feel the presence of evil right beside you.

This happened to me a couple weeks ago. Is the Devil real? You bet he is! And he knows our fears, he knows how to tempt us, he is the deceiver. But he does not have victory over this world and can not harm even a hair on your head without permission. He is used to draw God’s people closer to the love, the comfort, the sovereignty of our Creator.

It is very comforting to know that God’s plan for us involves every aspect of our lives. I was just recently reading Matthew 10:28-30, “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.” At that very moment I noticed one of my hairs had fallen onto my book. I blew it off and watched it float down the floor. As I watched, I realized that God loved me so much and was so involved in my life that He took notice of that hair and all the others that have found their way off my head.

I held on tightly to this comfort as the echo of “THERE IS NO GOD!” wrestled with my heart. But something else echoed in my mind, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). Paul reveals the blessing that every Christian should hold onto here. That God’s sovereignty and love for His chosen people will always be working for our benefit. We may not see or understand the purpose at that moment, but His greater glory is accomplished through these events.

Several weeks ago I had a conversation with some friends about ghosts and demons and Satan. I told them that we should be bold in our faith so that we could look Satan directly in the eye and fear nothing; trusting in God’s unfailing love. When my heart was put to that test I gladly clung to the Cross and the victory of Jesus Christ.