Get Real

Awakening (Part 2)

Continued from yesterday…

Second, the despondent seeker has already been awakened. All have been “awakened” to notice the emptiness in their soul. The emptiness is the wake up call to seek God. This person says he not religious because he has not had an “experience.” Many people confuse religion with faith; many also confuse faith with experience. These three terms are not interchangeable.

Religion involves rules. Experience involves self. Faith involves a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

Can you hear the longing when he says, “one day I may be able to realize that life is change and I can love it for what it is, not what it has to offer me (i.e. a feeling of belonging and love).” What this person does not realize is that the Source of life is what offers the security of belonging and love—even when these warm fuzzy feelings are absent.

The day we meet Jesus Christ of the Bible, is the day that our life will change. From that day forward, each and every day we will have what we need to get through that day and every day of our life thereafter.

Think logically for one minute. What if there really was a God who loved us and created us to have a relationship with Him? What if He really created the universe and evolution is the hoax? Logic says it would be better to trust in a Source that is more powerful than I am to get me through the struggles that are bigger than I am.

I hope you’ll move from logic to faith—faith in God. This is the true awakening.

You can find more intriguing writings like this at http://www.sharonhouk.com/faq.html

No Such Thing as Universal Love

Many believe that because “God is Love” he will ultimately save all people. This is not so. It cannot be so. It would contradict the very nature of God, which also includes holiness and justice. Therefore, love cannot overpower holiness and save those who reject Christ and die in their sins.

This is a hard truth for many. But, better to consider it now while alive and able to choose than after death when it’s too late.

God’s love is universal in that it can be known to all. It has nothing to do with affection and everything to do with perfection. That is: God is and man is not.

He loves sinful people because he is gracious. His mercy is universal in that it is available to all. This is the unmerited favor of God shown to man primarily through the work of Jesus Christ. All of these concepts are related and stem from the love of God who is love.

You can find more intriguing writings like this at http://www.sharonhouk.com/faq.html

You Can Know God

  If we are to know God at all, it is necessary that he reveal himself to us. Even when discussing the revelation of God that comes through nature, God shows himself to us. The natural creation reveals God because he chose to have himself revealed that way. However, nature is not God and God is not in nature (as some believe). We can know there is a God because nature reveals God to us.

Only Scripture can tell us how to interpret natural revelation of God correctly. To not consider the God of the Scriptures and only consider the God of nature is futile thinking. To think we can know God based on our own wisdom is foolish thinking. Ahh…but to believe that is the first step in knowing God.

Jesus Christ came to give us understanding “to know him that is true.” We can know God, when we believe what God reveals in the Bible. We commune with him in his presence, we sing his praise, and we are aware that he personally dwells among us and within us to bless us. Indeed, this personal relationship with God the Father, with God the Son, and with God the Holy Spirit may be said to be the greatest of all blessings of the Christian life.

If you’ve known God, but have turned your back on Him, will you reconsider the relationship with Him? Chances are he is not the one that caused you the pain that prompted you to flee. Instead, it was the sin of another.

What have you got to lose by looking heavenward and seeking reconciliation with the God who loves you so much? What?

I’d like to hear from you.

You can find more intriguing writings like this at http://www.sharonhouk.com/faq.html

Clinton, McCain, Obama, Romney, et al…

Politics is not my forte. But, recently, I’ve come to consider how the worldviews, or basic beliefs of each of these individuals running for president would affect me once elected.

A few months ago, I posted about two bills in California that may ultimately impact what I do—teach from the Bible and proclaim absolutes about what is written therein. My beliefs could “offend” someone, and in some circumstances, I could be fined or jailed. These laws are in effect because of the individual(s) who signed them into law. They did so based on their worldview.

It is nearly impossible to vote for a political party based purely on its original foundational values and be certain that those values will be honored.

There is a plethora of issues to consider before we vote, right? Do they support abortion? Will they fund illegal immigration? How hard will they push to get homosexual rights passed into law? Are they for the war in Iraq or against it? Will they support a divided Israel? Will they raise taxes or balance the budget? Will they save the rain forest or cut it down? The list is endless depending on what is important to you.

The answers, or lack thereof, could keep you awake at night, or be the cause of many heated arguments. As for me, I anchor all of this worry on the Rock of my salvation—Jesus Christ.

You see, when you base your worldview on the absolutes of the Bible, you needn’t worry about the answers to these questions. Educate yourself on the individual running for office before you vote? Yes. But worry and argue about it? No. God has it under control. The earth and all that is in it, is His. He knows the beginning from the end and has our future in his loving hands—if you call on Him as your God and your Savior.

Pay it Forward

In 2000, Warner Brothers released a movie that challenged and encouraged humanity to think of the  needs of others. Trevor McKnight, the main character in Pay it Forward, believed one idea could change the world. He believed in the goodness of human nature and put actions to his beliefs. Because of a social studies assignment, he determined to do a good deed for three people who in turn must “pay it forward” by doing a good deed for three people who must in turn each do good deeds for three other people.

Where does goodness come from? Because my worldview is firmly planted on the teachings from the Bible, I can only offer one answer. Goodness comes from God because God is good.

Why does society wait until November and December to begin volunteering at charitable organizations or put extra change in the red bucket with the ringing bell? It is not because there is a little bit of God in all of us. Humankind was created in the image of God, therefore we may have similar desires as God, i.e. doing good. However, it is important to recognize that humanitarian efforts do no eternal good if the “do-er” does not know Jesus Christ as their savior.

Savior from what? Man is separated from God because of sin. Plain and simple. True and truth. Only when one believes and acts on these truths is God in us and we can do good that will last.

Paying it forward is a wonderful concept and no doubt the recipient will be grateful. Jesus paid it forward 2000 years ago. You, the recipient need do nothing except receive the gift of Salvation.

You can find more intriguing writings like this at http://www.keytofreedom.org/faq.html

Joy to the World!

A recent article on MSNBC entitled “How to be Happy Again” says it all, we all face unhappiness at some point in our lives. I’ve heard it said that being happy is based on what is “happening.” If this is so, then there has to be a better way to go through life merely hoping for happiness.

On the other hand, joy comes from within—but only if we know the Source of joy. You are probably familiar with the old song commonly sung at Christmastime Joy to the World. The first stanza reads:

Joy to the world, the Lord is come!

Let earth receive her King;

Let every heart prepare Him room,

And heaven and nature sing,

And heaven and nature sing,

And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing.

But, are you familiar with the promise offered in the third? Turn up the volume and take a look and listen. One day, Jesus will be King here on earth. There really will be a time when Christ will heal the earth and there will be no more thorns and weeds (a part of the curse). Until that time, there will inevitably be sorrow, tears and unhappiness in our lives.

God sent Joy to the world. This truth provides hope, and hope leads to joy, and joy comes from knowing Jesus as Savior. He fills our hearts with joy!

Read more about this good news here

You can find more intriguing writings like this at http://www.keytofreedom.org/faq.html

On the Contrary

At the opposite spectrum of my last post, life with a true meaning leads to life—eternal life in the presence of a loving God. However, until we get there, we live here and “here” requires us to deal with a less than perfect life.

Perhaps we can have peace like a flower—even in this crazy, chaotic world we live in. It is our tendency to borrow trouble from the future—especially during this season. We spend our energy worrying about the right gift, the right card or the right tree. We become frantic and pressured looking at the many demands on our to-do list. We lie awake obsessing over plans for the upcoming weeks.

Meanwhile, there is a gift of peace waiting for all who will stop and simply ask for it. The gift I speak of is what the Christmas season is all about—Jesus Christ. The gift of peace can be ours for the asking. There is a simple but profound principle in the Bible about peace:

Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.

Each day has enough trouble of its own.

I don’t know about where you live, but here, every piece of vegetation is still covered in ice from a recent ice storm that came through. However, when springtime comes and the flowers bloom, they will do so without any worry or stress. They will simply sit and soak up the sunshine of their Creator.

Children go through life in a similar fashion, delighting here and now untroubled by the future. When we find that wholehearted simplicity, we too shall know the peace that transcends the chaos of our lives.

Contrary to those who feel their lives are meaningless there are those who know their life has meaning. It is this knowledge that gives them peace—like a flower.

You can find more intriguing writings like this at http://www.keytofreedom.org/faq.html

Meaningless Existence Leads to Death

This week’s news of Matthew Murray, the gunman that opened fire not once, but twice at two religious organizations in Colorado, leaves me nauseous. Not for the crime, nor for the locations, so much as for the dark, driving force inside this young man. He said it himself on his blogsite, "I've just snapped. I can't take this meaningless existence anymore…”¹

It doesn’t have to be this way. Yes, Matthew grew up going to church, but that doesn’t mean he knew God as his Savior. If he did ever meet God and give his life to Him, he stopped depending on Him to be his strength in time of trouble—he had no hope. Murray was not alone in his misery:

·         Four days earlier a gunman in Omaha opened fire into a crowded mall, killed eight people and then killed himself.²

·         Studies show, “Mental health problems and suicide rates have increased among U.S. troops who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.”³

·         A woman leaped from an 11-story Tokyo apartment Wednesday in an apparent suicide, striking and seriously injuring a passer-by, a news report said Wednesday (the same day as Omaha).⁴

·         The suicide rate among preteen and young teen girls spiked dramatically in a disturbing shift that federal health officials say they can't fully explain. For all young people between ages 10 to 24, the suicide rate rose 8 percent from 2003 to 2004 the biggest single-year bump in 15 years ." These rates include older teen girls, those aged 15-19 shot up 32 percent. ⁵

The statistics could go on for pages. I know you know that. However, what federal health officials cannot explain can be explained in one word—hopelessness. It is here I will sound like the “broken record” and repeat myself yet again. God is our hope, the only hope for mankind. It’s a daily journey of knowing him through his Word (the Bible), depending on the principles therein and trusting that our lives are not meaningless. Our existence is not some futile random chance.

There really is a God. There really is life after death—either in the presence of the loving God or in eternal darkness away from God. Jesus really is the reason for the season. I pray his peace will surround and encourage all of those whose lives have been affected by the tragedies of this last week.

Know God; know peace. No God; no peace.

Know God; know hope. No God; no hope.

Find words of comfort and encouragement here.

You can find more intriguing writings like this at http://www.keytofreedom.org/faq.html

1 http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,316387,00.html

2 http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/05/mall.shooting/

3 http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory?id=3860587

4 http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=3801575

5 http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory?id=3574114

Who Can You Trust?

Once someone betrays my trust, it takes a long time and a lot of care on the offender’s part before I freely trust them again. Today, please consider who you have trusted (family, loved one, authorities, educational system, politicians—okay now I’m just kidding). Who has kept their word and who has let you down, or worse yet—betrayed you?

I recently spoke to someone who said, “I used to trust God, but not anymore.” He felt as though God had let him down because things didn’t go right in his life. I am certain this man is not alone in his assumptions about God’s responsibility to humans. Unfortunately, it is a naïve assumption that concludes that God is required to make us happy or keep our life pleasant.

As I consider all of the various people and entities in my life, there is only one with a proven track record for always keeping his word and his promises. That one would be God.

Before you click the red X and close this window, consider what you know about God personally and from independent research. If you’ve not read His words (the Bible) for yourself, you’re being cheated. He does not promise life to be a bed of roses and free from trouble. In fact, those whose stories are captured on the pages of Scripture reveal just the opposite. However, throughout 6000 years of recorded history, God has kept his word. He does not change. He is trustworthy.

Who can you trust? You can trust God through Jesus Christ his son.

Read the prologue to the story here.  Let me know what you think.

You can find more intriguing writings like this at http://www.keytofreedom.org/resources.html

Who Should Teach Our Children What?

Yesterday, I mentioned my first blurb on politics, today I offer a second based on a quote that captures another piece of California legislature in a nutshell.

(SB 777) Sacramento, California –– In a repeat of legislation vetoed last year by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, homosexual-bisexual-transsexual activists are pushing a pair of bills (SB 777 and AB 394) that would require all textbooks, instructional materials, school-sponsored activities, all school policies, and all teacher training courses to promote the transsexual, bisexual and homosexual lifestyles to children as young as kindergarten…

…This means boys becoming girls and girls becoming boys would have to be positively portrayed in health textbooks, sex education classes and school assemblies…

…Additionally, because parental units are gender-specific, married couples or a family with a “father and a mother” would be portrayed as mere stereotypes – outdated ideas –– and could be prohibited from textbooks because their discriminatory inclusion “reflects adversely.” Under SB 777, school curriculum in every public school throughout California, in every grade K-12, would have to portray transsexual and bisexual “parents” as normal. In essence, SB 777 would teach schoolchildren that there is no such thing as the natural family.¹ (SB 777 has since been signed into law)

The 1987 R.E.M. song with the lyrics, “it’s the end of the world as we know it…and I feel fine” is one we could be singing at stadiums throughout our land. Twenty years later and two decades farther away from a sense of what’s right and wrong, laws are governing what’s natural regarding sexual orientation and gender.

Consider how this bill “will permit transgender students to enter the locker rooms and restrooms of the gender with which they identify…Under the guise of preventing discrimination and bias against homosexuals, transgenders and other sexual variants, SB 777 will force innocent school children to accept alternative lifestyles.”

Oh, it won’t happen right away. It could take a few years before transsexual men or those posing as such feel comfortable using women’s public restrooms—or vice versa. And just because you don’t live in California, doesn’t mean you can disregard the news. You know Cali just sets the pace for the rest.

We, the parents, should teach our children biblical truths. Why? Because there are no others that stand the test of time. With these truths, we live in the brilliance of eternal hope, not the end of the world in the shadow of doom.

I can’t help it. I have an opinion. Jesus is the only way. So, what do you say? Would you like to know more about him today? (I said I was opinionated, not a great poet).

As always, I welcome your feedback and would like to show you the Way.

¹ Read the entire article here.

You can find more intriguing writings like this at http://www.keytofreedom.org/resources.html