DID YOU EVER FEEL LIKE GOD MIGHT AS WELL BE A MILLION MILES AWAY?

Did you parent ever tell you? Hey you live by faith not by your feelings?  I would feel chastised when I  would bring up this issue  of GOd being so distant?  Its one thing to quote  Bible  verses, it quite another to EXPERIENCE  God Jehovah  God in your life.. and  know that you cant explain it away?

Hagar felt this way.. you remember Hagar, the poor servant girl of Sarah and Abraham. She was hired to serve the family,but through no fault of her own, treated badly by Sarah. Sarah , if you remember the story was childless and unable to bear chldren,. SO Abraham slept with  Hagar, Sarah was do distraught with her situation, that she felt compelled to run away.

I wonder how it must felt, Hagar an Egyptian was considered less than a Israelite, a lower class if you will.  Out in the Judean desert, stars all around, she looked to God for help.  She named her first born Ishmauel,  and had an experience with God. I dont know if it was an appearance, a theophany or an angel, all we know.. is that she called that place. "El Roi"  meaning the God who sees me.

Wow what a wonderful name. In our study of Gods names, none is more endearing, than El  Roi.  What a comforting thought..  To some it might be suffocating to think of God is looking over my shoulder, but I look at it differently.  The omnipresence of God is everywhere.  " the  eyes of the Lord are everywhere, beholding the evil and the good"  Ps. 120 says that He is a God ' that neither slumbers nor sleeps."

We long for a more intimate experience with God, as the  Israelites had,.. and God  wants to reveal himself to us.   Enjoy this link at the bottom, that furthers expands this theme!

Its not wrong not want to feel God or experience Him. Its what the great men  of God wanted this, just read the Psalms!

Jehovah El Roi, He is the God that sees, and has  NOT  FORGOTTEN YOU!

http://airmiles.wordpress.com/2007/06/18/praying-the-names-of-god-el-roi/

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE

We are looking at the names of God. There are many names that mean a great many things, for instance:  David means "man after God's own heart" and Emmanuel, means "God with us."

Jesus the  Author and Finisher of our Faith.  Heb 12;2,3

When we  name our kids, we try to give them something thats meaningful.  The names of God are like facets of the perfect diamond. The more you show it, the more the sun reflects the brilliance of that light!

In this world of turbulence and change, there are few things that we can count on!  Death and taxes, NO!.. more than that! Jesus not only is  God,but doesnt change!   He is the author and finisher of our faith.  We dont serve a dead person,  (Mohammed) Islam, Hindu, or some other religion.  We serve a risen Saviour!

MISSION ACCOMPISHED!  I dont know if you remember Peter Graves is the TV series Mission Impossible, but Jesus started  a movement when he went to the Cross, and  will finished it when he comes in Glory to Judge the world!  He is the Alpha and Omega the Begining and the End!  I am glad that He left the portals of glory to become as man.

I recently watched Tom Cruise in Ghost Protcol, the whole movie built toward a climax.. Tom was tasked with stopping a nuclear attack on America. Among his feats was playing Spiderman on the Burj Tower, in Dubai!  He was suspended from cables a thousand feet in the air, this tower was about 2700 feet high!.. Time after time, he was thwarted in catching the evil nemesis, Kurt Hendricks,(Soviet nuclear scientist)  but he persisted. With the help of his team,  he was able to thwart the nuclear missile and avert diaster.

A Greater tragedy was avoided at Calvary. When Christ uttered, 'It is Finished" and the battle was over. Galatians 2:15 says that Christ triumped over the forces of evil by by making an open spectacle of them at the Resurrection.

The  TAKEWAWAY:

We  already have declared  victory:  John says, Greater is  He that is in you, than he that is in the world! This victory should carry over into  our spiritual lives and our  personal and careers.  He accomplished the ULTIMATE MISSION IMPOSSIBLE, and made it possible for every man and woman to spend eternity with Him.

WHAT WE SET OUT TO DO WE CAN FINISH!

A rebuke to me and many people.  You are known by what you finish and how well you finish.!

We have been  tasked with the greatest mission of all, not to save the world from nuclear disaster but to play a role in  saving the  world,sharing the gospel of the good news of salvation. Let us not fail to do this!

Read  Heb 12:2,3

GOD THE ALMIGHTY!

GOD ALMIGHTY

 What do we think of when we think of the word Almighty?   GOd is referred to as the Almighty Isaiah 9:6 and Psalm 24:8.  I think of the sun and its massive size and awesome power. In fact awesome doesnt even come close to describing the power of the sun.

Recently I viewed a program by NOVA on the sun. The sun and its core that is the nuclear reactions deep inside its core produce the energy that powers our universe.  Many thousands earth could fit into the sun, the heat near the  sun is millions of degrees.

Even the solar flares that produce solar waves that hit the earth  reach speads of 5 million miles an hour. Whoa, thats is incredibly fast and not only that, the earth shield has for the most part absorbed this sun impact on us. The incredible burst of energy  from the sun are so powerful that is God hadnt designed a natural shield, the ozone layer to protect, it  would fry us in short order!

One  partially burst of the suns flares could melt out infrastructure and put us in the Dark Ages, for months, even years!

Thank God  its placed 93 million miles away!

God is so Mighty and yet so genius that he designed the sun, which in itself is a mindboggling feat. He keeps the sun in its orbit, (imagine if it it flew out or orbit)??! He designed the earth to be protected and the planets to stay in perfect alignment!   Without Gods powerful hand at work, holding all things together, there would be no  civilized world as we know it!

It always amazes me at these so called educated people that try to imagine a world without God. It all happened by chance.. when all around them life is teeming with evidence of design, right under their own nose!

I love the song..

Praise to the Lord the  Almighty the King of Creation

All my soul praise Him for he is thy health and salvation

and so on..

COLOSSIANS 1:17   tells us "He is  before all things, and by Him all things consist"

God is the bonding agent, the creator, and the sustainer of this Universe we live in. THis gives me pause and a reason to glorify and worship Him. Whenever we get a 'little big for our britches" just remember that "HE KNOWS OUR FRAME AND REMEMBERS WE AR BUT DUST"

The very atoms, that power the nuclear energy of the sun, are present in us and our own energy cycles!

GOD THE ALMIGHTY, gives us every reason to love and serve Him, but He doesnt force us. Im glad I have Hin on my side!

Here here you are guys and gals. the link to NOVA and their awesome lineup of programs. I hope youll stop to reflect on God the Almighty!


http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/search/results/?q=sun&x=0&y=0

SNAP SHOT OF SUCCESS

I enjoyed reading about Les Brown a former accountant with an investment firm out of West Palm Beach Fla.. who just may be on the threshold of a nice NFL career. Whats more interesting, is that it almost didnt happen!!

Les Brown was a college dropout who decided to take a longshot by attempting the near impossible! (becoming a NFL player)  Being an accountant is a respected profession, businesses have a dire need for them.  Here was this  young man in his early 20s who had the  dream.. if you looked at him,  you would have said,  "hmm not your typical accountant."   

John had a dream, to play in the NFL. Now granted many young  men do, but John had the raw athletic ability. However John did not even play college ball, however his brother was an offensive tackle for the Cougars of BYU, but  John never played organized ball.  The clock was ticking on his dream, so he asked his brother to arrange a tryout at the PRO day workouts onthe BYU campus. Who did this guy think he was? After all only a small fraction of DIV 1 schools produce NFL roster players.

First shockwave, his workouts...He vertical jumped 39 inches and his 40 times was at 4.4. great for anybody, but phenomenal for a guy in  a 6 foot 4, 255 pound frame!!.. Enter  Brian Gaines, director of  player personnel for the Miami Dolphins.  Brian had offered Les  a tryout with the Dolphins in South  Florida.. 

To prepare for the opportunity, he  quit his job (normal security) to prepare for the workout at a 3 week pro facility in Hawai, with Ikei. After wowing the Dolphins, he signed a  minimum contract with a small signing bonus. Wow, did  you just read what I wrote??

An accountant chases a dream..despite not playing college football and drops a secure career with Huntsman Capital, in a prestigous business!  That my friends, is a perfect example of the American dream in a nutshell. That is the power to change your destiny by sailing your boat in another direction.

Lets see if we can review this:

He overcame doubt and fear and took action.

He saw an opportunity and thought he had a chance.

He acted on that opportunity, but preparing himself. he put himself in the best position to win!

he worked the angles, His brother had pull with BYU that allowed him the workout to get his name out there!

Now the fact that his brother played college football helped of course, The fact that maybe his father who runs Huntsman Capital had strings to pull with Steve Young, who is a managing partner helped, sure it did! We all need some help and some luck.

Lessons we can learn from Les.

One for some dreams it is not too late, You can go after them now!

Two you have to prepare yourself for that dream and train hard!

You have tute your own horn, no meek and mild here. If he didnt where would Les be today?.. back in that office,as a bean counter.

You cant listen to your friends, well meaning as they may be.  They told Les, as you can imagine.!  Les you screwing up a good career in your fathers business! Use some good sense.

Ironically today many of todays great businesses are the result of that very thing. The very naysayers of today benefit from the Googles, Starbucks, and the Amazons of the world!

For a interesting sidelight take a look at Forbes business site and you will find a mulitplicity of business success from every quarter. Take a look at your paper, our local paper features one almost every week. Heres to you Les Brown!!http://www.wpbf.com/news/sports/Accountant-Les-Brown-signs-contract-with-Miami-Dolphins/-/8789130/11238434/-/c0d07sz/-/index.html
                                                                                                                                                   

The Happy Until Trap..

Did  you have every that empty feeling that something is still missing?  You wonder hey, I have more than most or i have accomplished more this year than ever. .. but still have that empty feeling?  It seems that the whole of the human race is plagued with never ending search for happiness!  Youve heard it before pinging of the walls of your mind, Oh ill be happy when this happens or until that happens. Then it dawns on you, that day will never happen, until you realize that your happiness is witin you!

The secret, if you want to call it that, is that happiness lies within ourselves, and not anything outside of ourselves.. Wow most people dont get that I mean really get that until they are advanced in years!

The Bible has something to say about this, As a man thinketh in his heart so is he..  We are the source of most of our unhappiness.



Its as if we havent explored every planet of our imagination, traversed the universe, and conquered kingdoms. The story is told of young Alexander the Great, when he conquered all the known world, he sat down and wept.. for there were no more kingdoms to conquer.

We dont have that problem, it seems that we expect so much from life and ourselves, that we cant be content with the simple things of life.   Have you ever read about or talked to somebody who had done it all and achieved at a very high level and still said SOMETHING WAS MISSING? HUH?

Gretchen Rubin was a lawyer  clerking for Sandra Day O'Connor,  former justice  at the Supreme Court, who had a epiphany one day while riding a cross town bus in NY?  She had graduated from Yale, an Ivy Leaguer, but realized " Hey what about my happiness  anyway? "  She then realized that she was on the track, and decided that she wanted to write for a living.  Savvy in social media, she has gained quite a following with her NY times best seller, The Happiness Project.

http://gretchenrubin.com/about/about.html

She goes on a  journey to discover  all about that search for happiness. I cant even begin to go into all of it, but I will leave you with a quote from Robert Louis Stevenson, and the link to her great project that I have found wonderfully helpful.  This is another gem that you can use, share, and more importantly integrate into your daily life!

http://www.happiness-project.com/

Also another tool, that I hope you wont skim over, but will use. The Happiness Tool Box.

http://www.happinessprojecttoolbox.com/

The Happy Until Trap, is a cruel hoax perpetuated by the world and our consumer society. Its really quite simple..

Let me leave you with the words of Stevenson. "to forget  one's self is to be happy!"

VIP ACESS-- FIVE MEANINGS OF EASTER.

Hello friends, recently we have been talking about the FIVE MEANINGS OF EASTER  and how
especially how they're  important to the life of the Christian.  All of the Christendom swings on one event the resurrection of Jesus Christ!  Today we have that assurance, as Peter says that "hope that fades not away."  Paul also says, "we have that sure foundation."

There are not many things that are an absolute certainty in this world.   This is one of them!  The first meaning we covered was that we have eternal life!  Christ conquered death and the forces of evil at the Cross and made life after death a reality. 

The second meaning I want to share, is the fact that we have VIP ACESS to God!  What an awesome thought and  privilege for the believer. In  Matt 27:51  the veil of the Temple was rent from top to bottom, This was done and could only be done by God as a fulfillment of prophecy capping the end of the Age of Law and the start of the Age of Grace.

Wow no more do we have to go before a priest as a mediator between God and us.  Heb 4:25 says that we " may boldy come before the throne of Grace and ask for help."

If you wanted to talk to  Gov Nikki Haley the governor of SC, could you just drop in at any old time?  If you wanted to talk to Jack Welch could you do that?  How about President Obama? Obviously you know the answer! It would take weeks maybe months of planning to even get considered for an appt with anyone of this individuals, and that is if you have a shared interest that would benefit both parties!

How much of a chance do you  have with Mayor Knox White? My point is that you have unfettered access to the God of this Universe!  Life gets tough but you know that Jesus is always with you if you are a Christian, and he is nigh even if you arent!
 
The veil of the temple was appx  60 feet high and 30 feet wide and interwoven a rich tapestry. No one was permitted into that sanctuary except for the high priest.. and then only one time a year.

God wants us to approach Him as a  little child, with a spirit of expecation and boldness. Let us boldy come before Him,,  We no longer have the barriers to Him that once existed,  We have  FREE UNFETTERED ACCESS TO GOD.  HALLELUAH!

 Ephesians 2:14 says that he has broken down the wall.. and brought peace!  You dont need a  VIP pass or a VIP status to get an audience with Him.

Tomorrow we will talk about the third meaning of Easter, We can be overcomers, because of  the Resurrection!

FIVE MEANINGS OF EASTER (Mission Possible-Eternal Life)

FIVE MEANINGS OF EASTER, IN THE NEXT WEEK I WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE FIVE MEANINGS OF EASTER.

To most people Easter is, a time to get dressed to go to church. its a time for some to go on  Easter egg hunts, for others it something  that the Christians celebrate, the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Its not like most people havent heard multiple sermons on this topic. 

Why is it that most people yawn and become bored with the most earth shattering in human history? The story of Godman who became human to accomplish a mission set forth by his Heavenly Father. How can this be?  The Lord of the Universe came down on a mission to forever set us free, and WE YAWN AND REACH FOR THE REMOTE!!



FIRST CENTURY CHRISTIANS TURNED THE WORLD UPSIDE DOWN BECAUSE THEY HAD A REASON TO BELIEVE. IN THE GOSPELS THERE WAS A RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD, OT SAINTS WALKED INTO JERUSALEM AND SPREAD THE NEWS!!

TALK ABOUT A TOWN IN A UPROAR!

Man would I  like to have read the Jerusalem Post that day!

THE FIRST MEANING THAT I WANT TO BROACH IS   JESUS CONQUERED DEATH AND SIN, HE MADE ETERNAL LIFE A REALITY! THIS IS NOT ALL THERE IS.. THERE IS SOMETHING MORE. IF THIS WERE ALL THERE IS, THAN BEHAVING IN A TOTALLY SELFISH WAY WOULD BE UNDERSTANDABLE.  After all, there wouldnt be a judgement day!  Because He arose from the dead on the third day as He had prophesied, dozens of implications rain forth for all believers.

Today we have been become disconnected from our faith, it is a mental rote exercise, rather than a living breathing dynamic reality!

He gave us the power to live the Christian life!

He gave us a reason to live beyond the mundanery of everyday life.

There is a reason for all our struggles as we will soon find out!

Paul said it best. "And if Christ be not risen, then we are of all men most miserable!"

Our suffering has a nobility to it because Christ bore our sins and suffered setting a pattern for us.

We can overcome, We are overcomers by the blood of the Lamb!

Hebrews 4:15 tell us that we have VIP access to God.. we can come boldly before God for grace to help in time of need!

Harry Houdini once though he could conquer death and the masses gathered... no cigar. It didnt happen, Harry is still in the grave.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Houdini

Harry was beset with mediums and charlattans that were constantly trying to vie for  the spotlight. It was said he wanted  to believe in the spirit world, but the chicanery of these spiritualist made him want to  expose them, which he often did.

Harry decided to tell his wife to contact him after death. He wanted to prove or disprove that LIFE AFTER DEATH  was possible.  Unfortunately he wasnt able to prove anything because he is still dead. No contacts were ever made.  He couldnt conquer death, but Christ did!  There is a grave for every leader, religious leader, and potentate, but not one for the Son of God.

The grand meaning for us, is that we have a divine purpose to fulfill, a BROADER PURPOSE AND A SPECIFIC PURPOSE.  

  Revel in the fact of our Risen Saviour!  Stay tuned for the next release:

He is not here for He is risen as He said.!!!

Read  I Co 15 for further insight.   Our second meaning of Easter is the fact that we can be Overcomers..  Stay tuned!