tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-63077596537016458112023-11-15T10:33:35.131-06:00A Life of Oneness Views from an enneagram oneBen Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-1572448219072302342018-03-06T11:54:00.001-06:002018-03-06T11:58:17.600-06:00Faith/Beliefs Survey<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Hey everyone, I am doing a faith study survey. I welcome
everyone to participate regardless of your beliefs, because that’s exactly what
I want to know is your beliefs. I am wanting to hear about your personal faith experiences.
I’m not looking to be convinced of anything, so please don’t try to “sell” me
your beliefs. This is also not a “whose beliefs are better” debate. You can
message me your answers, or you may comment below. For those that read the
responses, please do not reply or comment on them out of respect for each other’s
personal stories. I</span><span style="font-family: "calibri";">f you would like to participate, this is the information I
am looking for:</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Note: Since the word “faith” is used a lot, this is my
definition of it.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";">Faith-</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> <span lang="EN">a strongly held belief or theory;</span></span><span lang="EN"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">belief in a god or in the doctrines of a religion</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Faith Affiliate:</b>
Please label the religion or faith/beliefs that you practice (even if you have
no religion.)</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Personal Background:</b>
Were you brought up into this faith belief as a child? How did you come to the
point that you are today with your faith/beliefs?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Core Beliefs: </b>What
is at the center of your faith and what you believe? (Respond how you feel lead.)</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Source for
Strengthening Faith:</b> What practices do you do to stay strong in your faith/beliefs?
What keeps you motivated? What gives you hope in life?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Doubts: </b>Do you
have any doubts in your faith/beliefs? What causes them? (This is not seen as a
sign of weak faith/beliefs, rather as growth or a deepening.)</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">How We Came to Existence:
</b>How do you think the Earth and the Universe came into existence? How do you
think humankind began?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Thoughts About an
Afterlife: </b>Do you believe in an afterlife, and if so what do believe it
will be like?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Research: </b>To what
extent have you researched or tested your faith? (ex. asked others, talked with
leaders, read books, studied in a school, experiments)</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Involvement in Community:
</b>What is your personal involvement in your local or national community? How
does your faith/beliefs play a role in this?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Political Views: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></b>What party would you affiliate with if any?
How active are you in voting locally or nationally? How does your faith/beliefs
play a role in this?</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Additional Comments</b>:
Feel free to add anything else you feel is important about your faith/beliefs
that I did not list. (ex. conversion stories, other testimonies that impacted
your beliefs.) </span></div>
Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-7405051724887653862018-01-19T15:51:00.001-06:002018-01-19T15:51:52.878-06:00Thoughts During Lunch Break
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The italics are a sort of meditation
to help guide you into my thoughts over lunch break. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Imagine yourself in comparison with
the ant, flea, or grain of sand. You are massive compared to these smaller
things. Think deeply on this and ponder this.</span></i></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Imagine yourself moving like a
giant, without sudden movements, but instead slow and steady as if the grain of
sand were a normal person. </span></i></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Now look at your hands. Slowly move
your fingers and understand that you are in control. Your hands are your
servants to serve your will. They do as you command. They feed you, scratch an
itch, lift objects, and rub your eyes so you can see more clearly. They are to
serve You. </span></i></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">This is what I was thinking about
while on my lunch break at work today. I began to think about my body as the
makeup of billions of cells and atoms to be what I am. And for the most part, I
am in control of them. They serve me. This was very empowering. I felt like I
was some ruler or emperor commanding legions of armies under my breath. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Then, my body started to turn on my
mind. I began to think, “What if all of this is some big mirror act, and my
mind is a puppet to my body??” I felt that maybe my body was in control of my
mind, and that my body was so intelligent that it could read my mind and move
in sync with my mind’s thoughts as if it were looking in a mirror. My body was
in control of my mind..</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I felt trapped, in a prison, in an
eternal hell that I was forever being controlled and had no way out of it. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Then I realized I wasn’t in war
between my mind and body, but instead in a balance, a peace. The mind helps the
body, and the body helps the mind. My mind tells the body what to do, so that
the body may live and be healthy. My mind needs the body, and the body the
mind. The body willingly serves my mind, (ideally) following it’s every
command. No more puppetry, no more prisons, no more hell.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I am at peace.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The river would not be a river had
the ground not given it a path. The ground would not be the ground had the
river not obeyed the ground’s direction. The river would become and ocean and
have no direction. The ground would be hidden underneath the ocean and never be
seen again. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">All things must work together.</span></div>
Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-33586608104244278962018-01-17T14:57:00.001-06:002018-01-17T15:04:01.294-06:00What's Next?<br />
It has been more than a year since I posted a blog. It's crazy to me how much I feel I have changed in a year. I read back on some of my past blog posts like, "I'm not sure I agree with you anymore." A year from now I'll probably do the same to this post. The past two years I've only posted one blog each year. I'm planning on posting at least once a month this year. (So far I've met my goal!)<br />
<br /><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
My wife Caitlyn is a big fan of the enneagram. If you bring it up to her, she could talk about it for hours. For those that don't know what the enneagram is, it's a personality diagram numbered 1-9 that helps describe the motivation behind why you act the way you do. <a href="https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/the-enneagram-and-the-practice-of-law-43792/" target="_blank">This article</a> is more about the enneagram and lawyers, but it has a great overview if you want to quickly find out more about it. If you want to get really deep into it <a href="http://www.russellrowe.com/enneagram-system-32.php#part5" target="_blank">this </a>is another good article. I took the test and was labeled a One- "The Reformer". I'm not a big fan of personality tests because it seems to try and define who you are, when you are your own person and a test does not define you. I'm also told that this way of thinking is typical for an enneagram one... All that to say that as a one, it is very difficult for me to write my thoughts and especially display them publically for fear of them not being true. Ones search for truth. They want to know the truth and speak the truth. That is what has kept me from posting for so long. Previously when I posted blogs I would write it, re-read it, think on it, ask others to preview it, and read it again until I saw no mistakes before posting it for fear of being misunderstood. So why am I attempting to blog again? Well, a few reasons:<br />
<br /><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
1) I want to keep a record of my thoughts without having to keep a journal or store it all on my computer.<br />
2) It helps me organize and process my thoughts.<br />
3) I want to share my thoughts with others so that we could talk about each other's thoughts without being like, "Hi. What are your thoughts on the penal substitution theory?" These aren't the best topics to bring up in passing, so hopefully these blog posts will open some opportunities for discussion on topics like this later. <br />
4) Maybe this will be a place that you can go to see similar thoughts and not feel alone, or to read about things might not have thought about before. <br />
<br /><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
I currently don't have any set agenda other than posting at least once a month and those four reasons above, but I guess we'll see where this leads. Stay tuned for more posts to see what's next!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-51536839118654114522016-12-02T16:04:00.000-06:002016-12-02T16:04:22.940-06:00Slipping on Frozen Pee
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The season
for Coldest Nights has begun. For those that don’t know, Coldest Nights is a
program in which The Journey Home, Murfreesboro Cold Patrol, Murfreesboro
Rescue Mission, First Baptist Church, St Paul's Episcopal, and a few other churches pool their
resources together to provide an emergency shelter to house men and women who
are experiencing homelessness for when the temperatures are freezing or below. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I was
hanging out at FBC where the men are housed and was talking with some
volunteers that help with Murfreesboro Cold patrol. They were telling me stories
of the previous year of when they were taking care of one of the homeless
persons. They told me stories of it being freezing cold outside and they would find this person
drunk while half passed out in a bundle of urine stained blankets. The volunteers told me about
slipping on this person’s frozen pee one time at this person's camp. One time a volunteer was carrying this person back to their camp and the person
peed on the volunteer (not accidently), and at a different time this person threatened to pee on the volunteer if they didn't leave. I was shocked and disgusted when hearing about this, but listening to these
stories opened my eyes to how these volunteers are serious about loving their
neighbors. After many of these unfortunate encounters with this person, the volunteers
continued to care for this person and at times most likely saved this person’s
life from freezing in the cold.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">These
stories amazed me because of the things these volunteers would go through to
take care of a stranger. They weren’t afraid to get their hands dirty. It
reminds me of when Jesus healed the lepers, freed the demon possessed, and washed
His disciples’ feet. Jesus wasn’t afraid to get His hands dirty. It struck me
hard with my own convictions on how I want to help, but how I’m not willing to get
my hands dirty. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I began to
think in a new way of when Jesus washed His disciples’ feet. Jesus wasn’t
afraid to get dirty in order to make the disciples clean. He worked to scrub off
the layers of sand, clay, mud, possibly dirt from animal droppings, possibly even dried blood from various cuts, scrapes, or blisters. Jesus washed them. As He scrubbed He took
away the evidence of the places they had been in the past. He prepared their
feet for a new day, a new beginning. The disciples didn’t ask for it. Peter
even said he wasn’t worthy of it at first. Even though, knowing their feet
would get dirty again, Jesus still cleansed them from what they had been walking
through. </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">How willing
are we to get our hands dirty to help someone else have a fresh start, even if
the person didn’t ask for it? We may have strong evidence that they are going to mess up again, but can we continue to forgive them of their past like Jesus did? My respect goes to those volunteers who are crazy enough to keep loving. </span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I pray that we,
me included, will be willing to get our hands dirty the next time the
opportunity comes our way. </span></div>
Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-8077143369528240162015-09-28T13:06:00.003-05:002015-09-28T18:46:19.642-05:00God Is Not In ControlIf the title of this blog post churned your stomach, good.<br />
<br />
I'll say it again, God is not in control.<br />
<br />
When people hear this phrase I would say that the general immediate response is, "Blasphemy! Who are you to speak such words?!" I can imagine the voice in one's head yelling that passionately. But if you stop to really think about those words <i>God is not in control</i>, I think you will begin to understand and agree.<br />
<br />
I have discovered a passion that I have, and it is making people think about and rethink what they believe. I feel that we as people generally become stagnant and start to lose our passions as we grow older. Events and life circumstances tend to distract us from what really matters, Christ. I am guilty of succumbing to these distractions as well as most people. Yet, sometimes I regain strength when I take time to stop and meditate.<br />
<br />
So, meditate on those words <i>God is not in control</i>. What passions does that stir inside? What feelings do those words conjure up? Do you scoff at them and immediately dismiss them?<br />
<br />
You may be thinking, "Okay you've said it enough, now get to your point." Let me give you the rest of the statement.<br />
<br />
God is not in control because if He was, I would not be able to make that statement.<br />
<br />
If you didn't get it, please read the above sentence^^ one more time, and slowly.<br />
<br />
For those of you who don't know me very well, I will say that I am a believer in the resurrected Son of God, Jesus Christ, who died once to forgive the sins and save all who choose to believe in Him.<br />
<br />
So how then, if I am a believer, can I say that God is not in control? Simple. If God my Father were in control there would not be a "refugee crisis" going on right now. If God was in control, you would never have been overcome by temptation to commit your most recent sin. If God were in control sickness of any kind would never be an issue. The list goes on.<br />
<br />
When we say that God is in control, we are making a very bold and confusing statement to non-believers or those who are struggle in their faith. <span class="verse v19 selected" data-usfm="1JN.5.19"><span class="content">In what we call the present, Satan has power on the earth. He is the thief that comes to steal, kill, and destroy, and he will do whatever it takes to distract us and pull us away from God. I believe the words <i>God is in control</i> are ignorant and blinding to the truth and love of God. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span class="verse v19 selected" data-usfm="1JN.5.19"><span class="content">Those words can be easily destructive because Satan is doing all kinds of evil trying to make us blame God for things gone wrong. All disease is from Satan. All hatred towards others is from Satan. Where is the hope for someone who is going through trials, has an affliction, or has lost a loved one and hears the words </span></span><span class="verse v19 selected" data-usfm="1JN.5.19"><span class="content"><i>God is in control</i>? If God is in control, why the suffering? Why the pain? Why the hatred towards others?</span></span><br />
<br />
<span class="verse v19 selected" data-usfm="1JN.5.19"><span class="content">I give the hopeful words that God is not in control. Satan still has power to steal, kill, and destroy. Wait, what? How are those words at all hopeful? Because we know that on that final day, when Jesus comes again, God <em>will</em> be in control! After that day there will be no more sickness, no more pain, no more hatred for those who believe in Jesus Christ, the hope of glory. We know that on the day God is in control, we will no longer have to struggle with sinful thoughts or desires. We know that when God is in control, we won't have to worry about where our next meal will come from or where the money for our next bill will come from. On that day, when God is in control,</span></span> every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord! So please, think a little more about your stereotypical "Christian" phrases before you say something that may slowly decay and poison someone's faith. <br />
<br />
Now, don't think that because God is not in control that there is no hope for the present as well. We are told by Jesus to ask and receive and about how much our Father gives good gifts to those who ask. We are told to knock and the door will be opened to us and to seek and we will find. There are many times that each of these have come true for me in my life, and I believe that it will happen again. I also believe this can and will happen to anyone who asks and believes.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Our Father may not be in control right now, but He is omnipotent and is able to do anything He pleases. Because I know He loves us, I know He will support us in the fight against Satan until Christ comes again to reign.<br />
<br />
****<br />
<br />
<br />
For those of you that are like me and would like to see where this mindset comes from in scripture, here are a few verses that will back up what I have said:<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong><u>Satan is on the earth here with us still.</u></strong><br />
<br />
<span class="verse v6" data-usfm="JOB.1.6"><span class="content"></span></span><span class="verse v7" data-usfm="JOB.1.7"><span class="label"></span><span class="content">"The </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” </span></span><br />
<div class="p">
<span class="verse v7" data-usfm="JOB.1.7"><span class="content">Satan answered the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content">, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”" -Job 1:7</span></span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="p">
<span class="verse v1" data-usfm="JOB.2.1"><span class="content">"On another day the angels</span><span class="note f"></span><span class="content"> came to present themselves before the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content">, and Satan also came with them to present himself before him. </span></span><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="JOB.2.2"><span class="content">And the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” </span></span></div>
<div class="p">
<div class="p">
<span class="verse v2" data-usfm="JOB.2.2"><span class="content">Satan answered the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content">, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”" -Job 2:1-2</span></span></div>
<div class="p">
<span class="verse v2" data-usfm="JOB.2.2"><span class="content"><br /></span></span>
<span class="verse v2" data-usfm="JOB.2.2"><span class="content"><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="1PE.5.8"><span class="label">"</span><span class="content">Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. </span></span><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="1PE.5.9"><span class="content">Resist
him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of
believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of
sufferings." -1 Peter 5:8-9</span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="p">
<br />
<strong><u>Satan has supernatural power on this earth to try and blind and keep us from the Father.</u></strong></div>
<div class="p">
"<span class="verse v19 selected" data-usfm="1JN.5.19"><span class="content">We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one." -1 John 5:19</span></span></div>
</div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span class="verse v19 selected" data-usfm="1JN.5.19"><span class="content"><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="MAT.4.8"><span class="label">"</span><span class="content">Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. </span></span><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="MAT.4.9"><span class="label"></span><span class="content">“All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” </span></span><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="MAT.4.9"><span class="content"></span></span><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="MAT.4.10"><span class="label"></span><span class="content">Jesus said to him, </span><span class="wj"><span class="content">“<span style="color: #cc0000;">Away from me, Satan</span>! <span style="color: #cc0000;">For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only</span>.’</span></span><span class="note f"></span><span class="content"> </span><span class="wj"><span class="content">”</span></span></span> -Matthew 4:8-10</span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
"<span class="verse v2" data-usfm="JOB.2.2"><span class="content"><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="1PE.5.9"><span class="content"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span class="verse v30" data-usfm="JHN.14.30"><span class="label"></span><span class="wj"><span class="content">I will not say much more to you, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold over me,</span></span><span class="content"> </span></span></span><span class="verse v31" data-usfm="JHN.14.31"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span class="label"></span></span><span class="wj"><span class="content"><span style="color: #cc0000;">but he comes so that the world may learn that I love the Father and do exactly what my Father has commanded me.</span>" -John 14:30-31</span></span></span> </span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<b><u>The Father giving good gifts.</u></b></div>
<div>
"“<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc0000;">Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened</span>."" -Matthew 7:7-8 </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
"<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cc0000;">If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!</span>" -Matthew 7:11</div>
<div>
----</div>
<div>
Please feel free to ask questions or make a comment below, or give another blog topic for me to consider. Thanks for reading I hope this has blessed you in some way!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-14221560565326005352014-04-14T22:52:00.000-05:002014-05-13T09:04:46.662-05:00Could Judas be the thief on the cross next to Jesus?This idea came to me recently after hearing a sermon that was taught through an interpretation of the story behind the robbers on the cross, in the gospel of Luke chapter 23. I know that asking if Judas is the robber seems out of left field, but I have some passages and ideas that can support this theory.<br />
<br />
Let's get your mind going. How many people do you meet that has the name Judas? People all around know about the story of how Judas betrayed Jesus, even non-believers. We like to point the finger to others and say, "At least I'm not as bad as that guy." How many of us look at Judas this way? The theory of Judas as the robber on the cross may change the way you look at Judas.<br />
<br />
So to start off, I know those of you who know the scriptures are already thinking about how the Bible says Judas hung himself. How could he possibly be the rebel/robber on the cross if it says he hung himself? Let's take a look at those passages. In Matthew 27:3-10, it says that Judas was filled with remorse and returned the 30 pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders. They don't accept his money back, so he throws it in the temple. "Then he went away and hanged himself." (v5) After that, the priests and elders decided that since this money is "blood money" they can't use it for the temple. So they go buy a field to make a burial place for foreigners.<br />
<br />
Now, lets look at the second passage about the death of Judas. It's not mentioned in the other gospels, although in chapter 1 in the book of Acts it mentions as kind of a side note about Judas's death in verses 18-19. It says that Judas bought the field with the 30 pieces of silver where he fell headlong, and all his intestines spilled out. Question: If you are hanging by your neck and fall, what hits the ground first, your head or your feet? It says he fell headlong/ headfirst, not feet first. So to me this does not imply that he hung himself. <br />
<br />
Woah! Wait a minute. Did the Bible just dispute itself? This question could easily start a huge controversy, because it puts into question those 66 books in which some of us put our faith in, and derive all of our beliefs from. So is the Bible 100% fact? Maybe not. Although I believe there is complete truth in the Bible. I believe the Bible is a compilation of books written over thousands of years about the love of God for man, how man turns from God, and how God still redeems man through His son Jesus. That's how I live with the truth of the Bible.<br />
<br />
Moving on, here you have two different accounts on how Judas dies. For whatever reason, one of them has to be false. Here's where my theory comes into play.<br />
<br />
John 12:6 says that Judas was the keeper of the money bag and that he would help himself to what was put into it. This makes Judas a thief, because he would steal from the bag of money that was meant for all the disciples. That being said, if you will allow me the liberty to interpret Judas's story it will all come together.<br />
<br />
What if, before Judas met Jesus, he was a greedy robber. He would find various ways to rob people because he was greedy with his money. Knowing this, Jesus makes him the treasurer over the disciples to give him a chance to understand that money isn't everything. Having nothing to lose, Judas becomes a follower of Jesus. Judas would hear Jesus teach, watch Him become popular, and begins to believe that Jesus will become the great political King of the Jews. Judas begins to think if Jesus becomes king, and he is the treasurer, that would make him very rich for when that time comes. As time goes on, Judas begins to think that Jesus is going too slow with starting His kingdom so he decides to push Him to speed things up by giving Him over to the authorities. Judas might be thinking that his betrayal could be the jumpstart to Jesus's reign, because it would force Jesus to take action. In contrast Jesus doesn't resist or fight back. Judas is confused. Jesus gets put on trial in the temple, is mocked, and beaten. Seeing this, Judas becomes filled with remorse. Things didn't go as planned. He realizes that maybe Jesus was talking about a different kind of kingdom the whole time. What had he done? Did he just turn in the one true King to be sentenced to death? He can't handle it anymore and turns himself in to the priests. He admits his sin to them (Matt 27:4) and leaves. He then gets seized by the officials outside the temple, since he pledged guilty to his crime. He was then taken to cross to be hung. Therefore, going away and hanging himself (Matt 27:5), since it was him that pleaded guilty. Judas would already be hanging when Jesus is put on the cross next to him. The people begin to mock Jesus, along with the other criminal hanging next to them. Again Judas can't take it anymore. He has to show Jesus he finally believes. He then turns to the other criminal, "Don't you fear God since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this Man has done nothing wrong." Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into Your kingdom and Your kingly power." Judas, the one who used to call Jesus teacher, now understands His real purpose and calls Him King. Jesus says to him, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise."<br />
<br />
I would say that the gospels wouldn't mention this theory even if it was Judas that was on the cross next to Jesus. I'd imagine that all of the disciples still had bitterness towards Judas when they wrote the gospels, and wanted to end his story with, "he got what he deserved". It says at least 12 times throughout the gospels that Judas was either a traitor, or the one who betrayed Jesus. Almost every mention of Judas is either negative, or is about his betrayal of Jesus. So I'd say it's safe to say they were still bitter about what he did.<br />
<br />
Aside from this theory, I doubt anyone believes Judas will be in heaven unless Judas was that robber on the cross. It would be so typical of Jesus to forgive him if it were. That's where, "The first will be last, and the last will be first" comes into play so well (Matt 19:30; 20:8; 20:16; Mark 9:35; 10:31; Luke 13:30). As far as we know, that robber was the first to enter the kingdom of heaven. Jesus was so loving that He would have had the ability to show love to the very one who betrayed Him, while He was in agony, dying on the cross. That is the power of the gospel.<br />
<br />
All this is just a theory, and I am leaving it up to you. This may or may not have happened, and most likely not. Either way, I believe if Judas was on the cross next to Jesus, that Jesus would have had the power to forgive even him. So may we go with that same power of love in mind to be able to love those who betray us, even when we are at our lowest point!<br />
<br />
<br />Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-72211677580182073002014-04-01T14:22:00.000-05:002014-04-01T14:22:19.630-05:00Another Lesson While RunningLesson 2 while running. It feels so good to run into the wind. In the heat of the afternoon, it feels better to have a breeze on your face to cool you off rather than the air to be still. Although this makes things like running more difficult, because the wind is pushing against the rest of your body, making it harder to press forward. I went running this afternoon and God revealed to me this lesson, even though it is almost the exact opposite from the last analogy in the previous post. God keeps things interesting like that for me.<br />
<br />
As we live life as Christians we often go against the flow of the things of this world. It is more difficult and is harder work for us, but it feels so refreshing. Different issues and emotions that we normally feel, like anger against our enemies, are so easy to fall into. It is difficult to forgive our enemies, and to love them. It is hard work and sometimes takes years to accomplish. But it feels so refreshing once we are able to forgive and love others. God had mercy on us so we must show mercy, though it's not easy.<br />
<br />
So like running into the wind, living a Christ-like lifestyle may not be easy, but it is so refreshing. There is a quote that which I don't know from whom it originated, but it goes well to end this post. "The fish that flow with the current are dead ones." Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-2844814913636018832014-02-20T13:45:00.001-06:002014-02-20T13:45:42.325-06:00Spiritual Health and Wellness<div>Today I went running for the second time since this winter. As for you runners, you can imagine how it feels. I am really out of shape. I've added over a minute to my pace since last season. My legs were burning the entire time, whereas before I could run with ease. But today, God taught me a lesson through my run. I typically like to pray while I run, and talk to my Father. Sometimes I can hear Him talk back and speak to me. This was one of those cherished and much needed moments. </div><div><br></div><div>Today the wind was strong. Throughout my run I would be running straight into wind gusts of about 20-24mph. For those of you that exercise outdoors, you know how difficult this can be. Add these wind gusts on top of me already being out of shape, I can say, I was in agony. But as a runner I have the drive to not stop until the end. I must keep running until the time is up, and I reach the finish line. </div><div><br></div><div>This analogy has been used many times, but this time I understand it even deeper now: Our physical wellness is just as important as our Spiritual wellness. We have off seasons with our faith sometimes, just like our workout routines. We get too busy with other things and neglect our Spiritual health. We get too busy to pray, too busy to read the Bible, too busy to love others. Today He taught me that even while we are trying to stay in shape, there are things that can hinder us and keep us from staying at the right pace. During our Spiritual workout, things can slow us down and keep us from getting to where we need to be.</div><div><br></div><div> While running today, I would be running against the wind at times. This would be an example of us not listening to the Holy Spirit, and falling into sin. Sin may feel good at the time, like a cool breeze on your face; but during the race it slows us down, makes us work harder, and hurts us rather than helping us. We need to stay away from sin in order to reach our personal best. We must go with the wind and let it push us and drive us to the end. Allow the Wind to help us, make it easier, and keep us on track. Submitting to the Holy Spirit is like running with the wind, it can still be difficult because we don't feel the cool breeze on our face, but He drives us to where we need to be, and pushes us in the right direction. It may not seem easy at the moment, but in the long run He will help us!</div><div><br></div><div>I thank you Father for teaching me this. Help us all to follow Your Spirit, so that we can run with You strongly until the end!</div><div><br></div><div>(Disclaimer: While running, we sometimes still have to run against the wind to stay on course, in which case this specific analogy doesn't apply. The analogy of running against the wind and having to stay on course is different lesson for another time.)</div>Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-51032072744549808912014-02-19T14:17:00.000-06:002014-02-19T14:17:03.489-06:00Looking for a Sign<i>"</i><span class="words-of-christ"><i>A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah."</i>- Matthew 16:4</span><br />
<span class="words-of-christ"><br /></span>
<span class="words-of-christ">Jesus replied with this to the Pharisees and Sadducees when they asked Him to give them a sign from heaven. I ask God for signs many times for guidance or direction in a situation. Jesus gave many signs throughout His ministry on Earth, so I believe we can certainly expect more through the Holy Spirit. But the Pharisees and Sadducees were testing Jesus, and pushed Him to try and prove Himself. They were blind to all the signs and teachings that had already happened. Jesus said they will be given the signs of Jonah.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="words-of-christ"></span><i><span class="words-of-christ">"</span><span style="font-size: 80%; line-height: 0; vertical-align: super;"></span><span class="words-of-christ">For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, </span><a data-content=""<div class=\"resourcetext\"><span class=\"lang-en\"><a data-reference=\"&quot;Jon1.17&quot;\" data-datatype=\"&quot;bible+niv&quot;\" href=\"/reference/Jon1.17?resourceName=niv2011\" class=\"bibleref\"><span style=\"vertical-align:normal\">Jon 1:17 </span></a><br /></span> </div>"" data-resourcename=""niv2011"" href="http://biblia.com/books/niv2011/bibleniv.Mt12.39#" rel="popup"><span style="font-size: 80%; line-height: 0; vertical-align: super;"></span></a><span class="words-of-christ">so the Son of Man</span><a data-content=""<div class=\"resourcetext\"><span class=\"lang-en\"><a data-reference=\"&quot;Mt8.20&quot;\" data-datatype=\"&quot;bible+niv&quot;\" href=\"/reference/Mt8.20?resourceName=niv2011\" class=\"bibleref\"><span style=\"vertical-align:normal\">Mt 8:20 </span></a><br /></span> </div>"" data-resourcename=""niv2011"" href="http://biblia.com/books/niv2011/bibleniv.Mt12.39#" rel="popup"><span style="font-size: 80%; line-height: 0; vertical-align: super;"></span></a><span class="words-of-christ"> will be three days </span><span class="words-of-christ"><span class="offset-marker" data-offset="4412789" id="marker8524088"></span>and</span></i><span class="words-of-christ"><i> three nights in the heart of the earth.</i></span><span class="words-of-christ"><i><span class="words-of-christ"> The men of Nineveh </span><a data-content=""<div class=\"resourcetext\"><span class=\"lang-en\"><a data-reference=\"&quot;Jon1.2&quot;\" data-datatype=\"&quot;bible+niv&quot;\" href=\"/reference/Jon1.2?resourceName=niv2011\" class=\"bibleref\"><span style=\"vertical-align:normal\">Jon 1:2 </span></a><br /></span> </div>"" data-resourcename=""niv2011"" href="http://biblia.com/books/niv2011/bibleniv.Mt12.39#" rel="popup"><span style="font-size: 80%; line-height: 0; vertical-align: super;"></span></a><span class="words-of-christ">will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, </span><a data-content=""<div class=\"resourcetext\"><span class=\"lang-en\"><a data-reference=\"&quot;Jon3.5&quot;\" data-datatype=\"&quot;bible+niv&quot;\" href=\"/reference/Jon3.5?resourceName=niv2011\" class=\"bibleref\"><span style=\"vertical-align:normal\">Jon 3:5 </span></a><br /></span> </div>"" data-resourcename=""niv2011"" href="http://biblia.com/books/niv2011/bibleniv.Mt12.39#" rel="popup"><span style="font-size: 80%; line-height: 0; vertical-align: super;"></span></a><span class="words-of-christ">and now something </span><span class="words-of-christ"><span class="offset-marker" data-offset="4412989" id="marker1323231"></span>greater</span><span class="words-of-christ"> than Jonah is here.</span> "</i> -Matthew 12:40-41</span><br />
<br />
<span class="words-of-christ">It seems Jesus was saying that the only chance of them seeing a sign was for them to witness His death and resurrection. Only then would their hearts soften to repent and believe in who He is. </span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span class="words-of-christ">Jesus died, rose from the dead, and gave us an advocate to be with us and help us share the love of Christ. That advocate is the Holy Spirit. We are given gifts through the Spirit to enable us to show signs of great love to our neighbors and enemies, that we could not show on our own. </span><br />
<br />
<span class="words-of-christ">So what does this all mean now? Well, to me it means that we should be the sign for our generation. People should be able to see the finished work of Jesus Christ through us in how we react to others, and through our lifestyles. So I encourage you to submit to the Holy Spirit to be a sign to this generation, and make people wonder how you can love others so radically!</span><br />
<span class="words-of-christ"><br /></span>
<span class="words-of-christ"><br /></span>Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-74579817977009628902014-02-06T23:28:00.001-06:002014-02-10T12:46:02.870-06:00My Deepest Apologies<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
</w:Compatibility>
<w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel>
</w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]-->I would like to take a moment to apologize on behalf of
myself and fellow believers. I am apologizing to whoever is reading this. I am
asking for forgiveness for the way we as Christians have treated everyone. Yes,
we are hypocrites. We go to church, and as soon as we leave we start sinning
like we did before we went in. We don’t treat others with love. We
pick others apart and point out the flaws in another’s lifestyle. We talk bad about
others behind their back. We break the law with no guilt on our conscience,
like speeding for example. We drive by the person walking on the side of the
road on a cold night not even thinking twice about offering them a ride. We say
we will pray for someone and go about our day possibly even forgetting to pray,
even though that person was just in front of us and we had the opportunity to
do so then. We rant and rave about injustice and unfairness that occurred against
us, and how we desire revenge on the ones who mistreated us. Most all of us
have an addiction of some sort that we feel we cannot break, even if that addiction
is caffeine. We also like to take Scripture out of context and use it to justify our worldly pleasures. <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yes, I apologize for all of these things, but I will not
apologize for Who we believe in. We all claim to follow Jesus, whether or not
we act like Jesus is another thing. That is the reason for this apology. We
claim to follow Jesus and believe in His teachings, but we don’t show it
through our actions. Don’t get Jesus confused with those who say they follow
Him. I encourage you to actually read the entire Bible for yourself. Only then
will you actually see Jesus for who really He is. Although, there are a few moments that
we as Christians get it right, and will do something Christ-like. You will be
able to tell when that happens because you will see an act of love that is so
radical that it will go against the normal flow of the world. It will be a
moment when you wonder how someone could show such compassion for a stranger or
enemy, or someone of a lower social class. You will be in aw of the mercy shown
for someone who doesn’t deserve it by the worldly standards. You may even see someone or yourself be healed in the name of Jesus! </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, I ask for forgiveness for all those moments that aren’t
Christ-like and hope that you can put all that aside so that you may see the
mercy, truth, and love that can only come from Jesus. </div>
Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-49783289595294379752013-08-13T07:54:00.002-05:002013-08-13T08:59:19.011-05:00La Romana, Dominican Republic Mission Trip Report<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:PixelsPerInch>72</o:PixelsPerInch>
<o:TargetScreenSize>544x376</o:TargetScreenSize>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><br />
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
</w:Compatibility>
<w:DoNotOptimizeForBrowser/>
</w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">I want to begin by saying that I feel so blessed
to have had the opportunity to go on this trip to La Romana, Dominican
Republic, and would like to say thanks to everyone who helped make it possible
with your prayers and contributions. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Growing up at First Baptist, I</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">ve been privileged to go on many short-term mission trips over the
summers. This most recent one to the Dominican Republic, I can say, was like no
other trip I have ever been on. One reason I think, is that there were a lot of
firsts for me on this trip. For me, it was the first time I had: been overseas,
even been out of the country, been in an environment where most everyone spoke
a different language than me, been in a community where my ethnicity was in the
minority by a large margin, gotten to see and swim in the Caribbean Ocean, flown
in a passenger plane since I was about two years old, and the first time I had
seen real poverty. I don</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t mean American poverty where the </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">poor</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"> have cell phones, and cable playing on flat-screen TVs. I mean,
no hot water, not even clean drinking water, no electricity poverty. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">The reason for this trip was to help spread the
love of Jesus to those in other parts of the world. So each day, after
breakfast, we would divide into two groups. One group would help with the
construction workers in building a concrete retaining wall around a local
church we were working with. The other group would go to different bateys or
barrios each day and host a type of backyard bible club (or VBS) with the kids
there. A batey is a small town, </span><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">owned by a company, where
the sugar cane field workers lived. A barrio is pretty much a neighborhood just
outside the city. </span><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Typically on these trips, I like to help mostly
with the construction. I like the type of work, getting to build things or make
repairs. I love working with Jason (a leader of the construction crew from our church), and I always learn a few tricks of the
trade to put under my belt. Also, by the end of the week you can step back and
see the finished product of what you have been laboring over the whole week. You
feel a sense of accomplishment, knowing all the hard work that went into the
project. This was not the typical mission trip for me though. Each morning, I
would ask God to show me what He wanted me to do each day. We would split into
the two groups by a show of hands each morning, and I would judge by the number
of people that wanted to do each task. Whichever group had the least amount of
people, I would take that as a sign as to where He wanted me to go that day. So
for the first 3 days, I had the honor of being part of the group that went into
the bateys to help lead the VBS. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">I was a little nervous at first seeing as 1) I
don</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t speak any Spanish, so I had no clue what to even say to the
kids. 2) The typical thing for me to do on these trips is the construction, so
VBS was something I'm not use to working. 3) I like to claim that I</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">m not the best with kids. But with all that against me, I believed
it was what God wanted me to do that day. So, I began to gain confidence in
that, and by believing He was with us.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"> </span></i><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Each day when we would get off the bus at the
different bateys or barrios, we would be swarmed by the kids there. By
communicating with hand motions and very few Spanish words, we would begin play games
with the kids. We would play games like kickball, jump rope, frisbee, baseball,
and a game best described as Dominican hot potato.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">We played that game alone for about an hour. The kids were happy
to play just about anything. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">After playing a while with the kids, we would
bring them into the community church to sing songs and show a puppet skit
about the good Samaritan (that was translated in Spanish). We would then send
them home to break for lunch. After lunch, the kids would come back to the
church, and we would make faith bead bracelets with the older kids. With the
younger kids, we would color coloring pages of a cross, or a scene from the good
Samaritan. When we finished with that, we would hand out snacks and juice, and play
with the kids for another hour or so. We would finally leave and head back to
the mission house around 2 in the afternoon.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Some afternoons we would come back to the
mission house just to relax, hang out, or spend some quiet time and read over
the devotions David or Natalie (student minister and his intern) would hand out each day. One afternoon, we went
to a girl</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s orphanage and got to tour the building and visit with the kids
there for a few hours. It's amazing how God opened our hearts to be able make
connections with the kids there in just a couple of hours. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">If you want to know what it was like in the city
of La Romana, I haven</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t been to a place in America like it to compare.
So, I will try my best to describe the area we were in. The buildings were very
close together, most weren</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t much taller than 2 stories. The streets looked
as if they hadn't been repaved since they were first out there. The traffic
consisted mostly of motorbikes, mopeds, and a few cars. The air in the city
streets smelled of exhaust from all the motorbikes. There were rain showers
most every night we were there. The temperature was about in its 80</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s, and the humidity level was high. None of the buildings we went
in had air conditioning, aside from the Jumbo (pronounced Joombo, which was
like a Super Target or Walmart) and a frozen yogurt shop. There was almost
always a breeze outside to cool everything off. The windows in most of the
churches were metal shutters that opened and closed to let air flow through.
The churches in the city had ceiling fans running to cool everyone off. There
were frequent blackouts in the city right around midnight. A few of the
buildings in the city, including the mission house, had their own backup
generators. The bateys we went to were a little different at each site. They
all seemed to have a church building. The houses looked like shacks built with
cinder blocks that had metal roofs. The walkways or roads all around the houses
were made of dirt and gravel. Some of the water sources came from either a water tower
that stored all the water, or a well with a faucet. The bathrooms were
outhouses, some made of wood, others out of cinder blocks. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">The people we encountered were typically very
nice. Most everyone appeared African or Haitian and spoke mostly Spanish. The
children in the bateys were so happy to just throw a ball back a forth. All the
workers at the mission house acted as family and seemed very happy to cook
meals for us and take care of us while we were there. God was very present
where we were. On the last couple of days, I was at the construction site and a kid named Tony asked me if I knew Jesus. I said, </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Si!</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"> I asked if he did too. He said he did, and he loves Jesus very
much. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During the worship services you
could feel the presence of God with us, through the songs and speaking (even
though we couldn</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t understand what they were saying). Through all the poverty,
there was what seemed to be joy and peace. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can imagine this only being possible with
God. </span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">There are definitely still needs there.
According to wikipedia their average salary is $5,000 a year. If you went to
stores like the Jumbo, prices weren</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t much different than in America. You can get
cheaper foods from the local shops and market but the quality wouldn't be up to
our standards. For example, the butcher shops we saw didn</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t seem to have A/C and were open to the streets. They would have meat
laying out on counters, and hanging out in the open. So, it wouldn</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t be very sanitary for us if you were to buy the cheaper produce.
The kids there mostly wore flip flops or no shoes at all, and were running
around on rocks and gravel. Babies had no diapers. You could see that some of
the children had ringworms from unclean water sources. There is a need there,
and they live in poverty. But you wouldn</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t be able to tell just from talking to the
people or playing with the kids. There was a sense that God was taking care of
them, and they knew that. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Of all these things I witnessed, and the many things
I experienced and learned, one thing stuck out to me, and it</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s this: Persistence with a pure heart comes blessing. By that I
mean, when we pray persistently with a pure heart about something and give it
to God, He blesses us for it. There is a parable in Luke 18 about the
persistent widow. She brought her problems before the judge continually and
wouldn</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t give up. The judge in this parable is said to be unfair, and yet
even he still granted her request in the end. We know that our God is just and
fair, and by this parable we learn how much more God will grant our pleas and
request if we are persistent. I said persistence with a </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">pure</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"> heart, because this does not mean our God is a genie. We don</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t give him our Christmas and birthday wish list, full of stuff.
Our motives must be pure and not greedy, focused on God</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s will and not being selfish. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">For a couple of months before the trip, I would
pray about God preparing the way for us at the Dominican, and softening our
hearts for the people there. At my work logging into the computer, and
performing some other functions, requires a password. I changed my password to
Dominican13 (which has changed again, so you can't sneak in and use it) so that every time I had to type it, I would be reminded to pray
for the trip. Every time I used that password, I would pray the same prayer
right at that moment so that I wouldn</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t forget. I feel I was prepared more for this
trip than any of the others I have been on. Not prepared by anything that I
studied or knew, because I still didn</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t speak a lick of Spanish. But, I was prepared
because God opened me to be willing to do whatever He would have me do that
day, and I knew that God was with us the whole time, guiding us, and preparing the
way. God definitely blessed us all on this trip, and anyone who went would
agree. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">We were blessed: to see the kid</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s smiling faces, to see them so content and happy just passing
around a ball in a circle with complete strangers who looked different than
them, to be taken care of by the people at the mission house where they cooked
breakfast lunch and dinner for us every day, to see
how the churches worshiped for hours at a time each night through the blackouts
and without A/C, and to see God</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s beautiful creation at the ocean or the hills
in the distance of the sugar cane fields. God willing, these memories will be
with me for the rest of my life. </span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">God softened my heart for the people there, and
prepared the way for us. Jesus said we will receive what we ask for if we are persistent in Luke 18. That parable
proved true for me, and I have experienced it first hand from this trip.</span></div>
Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-46941768193766796682013-08-07T11:17:00.000-05:002013-08-07T12:54:21.336-05:00Jesus Christ is the Same Yesterday and Today and Forever."Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." -Hebrews 13:8<br />
<br />
If you believe this is true, then would you say this command below from Matthew still applies today? <br />
<br />
"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” -Matthew 28:19-20<br />
<br />
And if you believe the above two Scriptures are true, do you think this still applies today?<br />
<br />
"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”- Acts 1:8<br />
<br />
At what point do we start taking promises and commands from Jesus in our own hands, choosing to believe in them or not? Is there evidence from the Scriptures that tell us these above statements don't apply to us anymore? When did the gift of the Spirit merely become your conscience, or guide? If the gifts of the Spirit are to further spread the gospel and the love of Christ, why would they be taken away from us? Some may argue that the signs and wonders that were performed by the disciples were just for that time, and that Jesus was talking to them specifically for that passage. If that is what you believe, then what do you say to the Matthew 28 passage about spreading the gospel? Jesus was talking to them specifically then too. <br />
<br />
We may just be afraid of what the Holy Spirit might do, therefore pushing away the idea that He is more than just a guide. So then, if the Holy Spirit, Jesus, and God are a Holy Trinity being one, what are we afraid of? Are we afraid of how our Creator may use us to further His kingdom? If we believe that the resurrection of Jesus gives us eternal life in Heaven, then what fear should we have on this Earth? The same Giver of eternal life wants to use us to build His kingdom, and sent the Holy Spirit so that we may be able to effectively accomplish this task. How did so many people begin to believe in Jesus during His ministry? And how are others to know that we follow the same Lord as that of the
early Christians? By our kind deeds to others, and lifestyles?<br />
<br />
<span class="verse v43 selected" data-usfm="ACT.2.43"><span class="content">"Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles.</span></span>" - Acts 2:43<br />
<br />
<span class="verse v3" data-usfm="HEB.2.3"><span class="content">"This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. </span></span><span class="verse v4 selected" data-usfm="HEB.2.4"><span class="content">God
also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and by
gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will." -Hebrews 2: 3b-4</span></span><br />
<br />
Or according to Paul:<br />
"<span class="verse v18" data-usfm="ROM.15.18"><span class="label"></span><span class="content">I
will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has
accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I
have said and done— </span></span><span class="verse v19 selected" data-usfm="ROM.15.19"><span class="label"></span><span class="content">by
the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit of God.
So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully
proclaimed the gospel of Christ." -Romans 15:18-19</span></span><br />
<br />
<span class="verse v4 selected" data-usfm="HEB.2.4"><span class="content"> </span></span><br />
I believe that if Jesus (being one with God and the Holy Spirit) is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and that He promised us the Holy Spirit enable us to do things even greater than He. <br />
<br />
<span class="verse v12" data-usfm="JHN.14.12"><span class="label"></span><span class="wj"><span class="content">"Very
truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been
doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am
going to the Father.</span></span><span class="content"> </span></span><span class="verse v13" data-usfm="JHN.14.13"><span class="label"></span><span class="wj"><span class="content">And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.</span></span></span>" - John 14:12-13<br />
<br />
So what are we afraid of? May we submit to the Holy Spirit each day, and allow Him to lead us to live lives worthy of the cross. Who knows, maybe we will see God use us to bring 3,000 to believe in Him in one day!Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-29910792027101426792013-05-26T22:10:00.000-05:002013-05-27T13:47:56.290-05:00Our Daily BreadSimply put, this blog is about reading the Bible. In the past year I have been convicted by the Holy Spirit for going about my life and not reading the Bible as often as I should. Therefore in the past year, I try to do everything I can to read something from the Scriptures every single day, and have a quiet time with God. This has helped me tremendously in my faith and my relationship with God. In this blog I will tell my view on how reading the Bible daily has sustained me, and ways that it may help you!<br />
<br />
Jesus prays to our Father in Matthew 6:11 about receiving daily bread. We need bread or food to eat daily to maintain physical strength. I believe we also need spiritual bread. I believe we receive our spiritual bread from reading the Scriptures. The
Scriptures feed us and nurture us to remain full and healthy in our
faith. One of the most important things we can do to remain focused on
Christ and what He did for us is to read the Scriptures. The Scriptures are real testimonies,
experiences, or stories of our ancestors, and show us how God has been present and worked through
their lives. In this world full of evil desires and sin, we must
immerse ourselves in the Word to remain a light in the darkness. There
are so many distractions that surround us daily. Satan works efficiently through
distractions. Satan tries whatever he can to deceive us and interrupt our
personal relationship with Christ. Keeping us distracted is the easiest
way, and possibly the most effective way that he works. That is why we must continually
stay focused on our purpose in life. Staying focused on the Word is one
of the easiest, and possibly the most effective ways to stay on track and
not get distracted. It works to fight against what Satan is trying to
do. I find that when I read the Bible each day, my heart is continually
being renewed and my passion for God becomes greater and greater.<br />
<br />
The Word protects our hearts for when we are
tested for our faith. The more we read the Scriptures, the more we will
be able to recite passages and verses that can, and will help guide us
when we are being tempted and tried. When troubles arise, verses will start coming
to mind; and parables that Jesus taught will begin to take a part in our
lives and have more meaning. Also, when we are having to defend our
faith to non-believers, we will have the Word with us if we come to
the point of memorizing Scripture. This comes in time, and the more we
read the more we will learn. Jesus was able to quote Scripture when He
was tempted by Satan, as we see in the beginning of Matthew and Luke. Satan would tempt Jesus with Scripture, but Jesus would resist temptation with the truth!
How great it would be for us to be able to quote Scriptures in truth for when we
are being tempted or tried! Continually reading the Word every day helps us to see the truth in the passages.<br />
<br />
Here are some tips on what has helped me for when I read
the Bible. First, you should pray that God guides you and points out the truths of each passage you read. You may desire to take from the Scriptures what you want them to say, but God may want to show you the truth in the passage. If I have time, it has been good for me to get a mix of about three different sections of the Bible. The first section would be one of the gospels (
Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John), or the epistles (the letters of Peter, Paul, or John). This is where we see the teachings of
Jesus and begin to have a personal relationship with Christ. This is
what guides our faith of Christianity, by reading the parables and about the life of Jesus. If you are low on time, I would say the gospels and the epistles
are the most important passages to read each day. The epistles are
where we see applications for the teachings of Jesus, and instructions
for how we should apply His teachings to our lives. The second section would be
something from either Psalms or Proverbs. These are
songs of praise and words of wisdom. These are good to meditate on; a lot of the Psalms
are good for praying and worship to God. The third would be the stories
of the Old Testament. These are good to read because they teach us
about who our God is, and show us the origins of our faith. They also show signs of Christ's coming and give more depth to His purpose. You can read these sections in any particular order. If have enough time I will usually start off with a passage from the Old Testament, then go on to a Psalm, and then one of the gospels or an epistle. Otherwise, I will just be sure to read the gospels or one of the epistles. <br />
<br />
In order to get the full context, you have to ask yourself a few things about each passage: Who
wrote it? Who is it written to? And why was it written? These questions
will help you be able to focus on the meaning or purpose of each passage, and give
you a base of understanding of what you are reading. Reading the Scriptures make Christ alive in us, and give us a new purpose to our lives. Going through the Bible together with a few others is a great way to hear different truths that each of you may have found in a passage. There are usually many truths to one passage that we each might see differently. I urge you to stay in the Word, and pray that the Holy Spirit transforms your heart to be open to what it has to say, so that you may have a closer relationship with God our creator, and Jesus Christ our Lord!<br />
<br />Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-22575435663613085352012-12-28T11:16:00.000-06:002012-12-28T22:32:09.626-06:00The World Didn't End, but 2012 Did. Okay, I realize the title says 2012 ended when technically there are still three days left after this post. I figured I'd post it anyway. It has been a while since I have posted, so I felt an update was due.
Things have started to become so different for me since the start
of this year. I have begun to dig deeper into the scriptures, trying to
immerse myself daily to understand the truth for myself. This has given me strength to build a stronger
foundation for a Christ-centered life. Earlier this year, it was
suggested that I go on a six month mission trip to South Africa by a
new friend that was placed in my life. Through much prayer and many
signs, it was confirmed by God that I was to go on this trip. Though, there were
some issues with the logistics of the trip that didn't line up.
Issues such as: not having money for plane tickets, nor money for the six months rent
that was due under contract of my current apartment here, or being able to have
a job for when I get back. There were other personal issues such as me
missing my girlfriend and my family that I couldn't get over. As I look back
now I see that I was told by God to go in faith, and I ran
away. I know this because of some events that happened the next few months that followed. I
started to live in a feeling of guilt, and my relationship with God was starting to become distant again. I stopped reading the word as much as I should have. I
became distracted by many things that I had thought I changed earlier in the year, things
like consuming myself with too much entertainment. To top it all off, my relationship with
Caitlyn (my girlfriend) was going downhill
quickly.<br />
<br />
About the same time I was to leave for the trip, I had begun to meet weekly with a good friend
of mine. As our friendship grew, we stared to hold each
other accountable for things, and help guide each other spiritually.
We would tell each other our blessings each week or different spiritual lessons that we had
learned. Among one of those lessons was learning how to be free from the feeling of guilt. I learned this when my friend showed me the passage at the end of
Luke when Jesus reinstates Peter. In that story Jesus forgives Peter, instructs him to not go back to his
old ways, and tells him to continue to follow Him. Through much prayer, and my friend's
God-given gift of teaching, God used my friend to help guide me back to where I
needed to be in my relationship with God. As my relationship with God began to get stronger,
my relationships with others including Caitlyn began to be more positive. I have learned so many
things this year and grown so much spiritually. God has continued to
bless me, even after I turned away from His calling. I thank God for the grace that He provides so freely through Jesus. <br />
<br />
For this next year I have bought tickets to go to the Passion Conference in January. Passion is a college-aged and young adult conference over about four days long that is at the Georgia Dome and has large worship sessions and smaller break out sessions. The large worship sessions last year had an attendance of about 45,000, and this year they are expecting even more to attend. They have various speakers that come and talk on different topics. Last year they did a session on Ephesians that was really powerful. I'm excited to see how God uses the leaders of this conference to speak to thousands of people in my generation. I'm also excited to be a part of worship with tens of thousands of others standing in the same room all praising God!<br />
<br />
This year has been full of learning and growing, so there may be a few more upcoming blog posts on what I have learned that I would like to share. I can't wait to see what next year holds! All glory to God!Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-31048340703082255642012-02-28T08:09:00.000-06:002016-06-24T11:52:01.588-05:00Predestination and Adoption Through ChristThe doctrine of election and predestination is a topic in Christian theology that is argued very critically on both sides. There are two main opposing sides, Calvinism and Arminianism. For those of you that don't know the difference between the two, looking at wikipedia describes them pretty well when it says, "Arminians believe that they owe their election to their faith whereas Calvinists believe that they owe there faith to their election." If you still have no idea what I'm talking about then this next section will explain it a little better.<br />
<br />
<b>Calvinism and Arminianism with the Doctrine of Election:</b><br />
<br />
In the Bible there are passages that talk about predestination and how we are elected by God to do the purpose of His will. I will try to write briefly on the differences between the two main ideas of theology that come from these passages. The most popular passages that are interpreted so differently come from Romans 8:28-30 and Romans 9:11-13<br />
<br /><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="margin-left: 0.3em;"><i>"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. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified."</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "verdana" ,;"><span class="verse Rom_8_30" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; font-style: inherit; line-height: 22px; margin-left: 0.3em;"> -</span></span></span>Romans 8:28-30<br />
<br /><br />
<br />
<i>"Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad—in order that God's purpose in election might stand: not by works but by him who calls—she was told, "The older will serve the younger." Just as it is written: "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated."</i><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "verdana" ,; line-height: 22px;"><span class="verse Rom_9_13" style="border-width: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px 0.3em; outline-width: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="trans" style="border-width: 0px; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; outline-width: 0px; padding: 0px 1px; vertical-align: 3px;" title="13 Mal.1:2,3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;">-</span></span></span></span>Romans 9:11-13<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "verdana" ,;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;"><br />
</span></span><br />
Calvinists would argue that we were predestined before we were born as to whether or not we would be called to faith in Christ. It is not our choice but God's choice according to His purpose to bring glory to Himself. Some believe that we have no choice of free will to come to faith in Christ, but because we are elected by God, we are then brought to faith. In contrast, Arminians would argue that we are not predestined, and that we have the choice of free will to choose to come to faith in Christ or not. Even though we are born in sin, the choice is ours to chose to answer God's call. Arminians would say that, through grace, God restores free will to all humanity.<br />
<br />
If you are still curious about these two doctrines, I suggest looking them up further on your own because they are both a lot deeper than what I have just said. This was to paint a small background of the two popular sides. John Piper goes as far to claim that these ideas in Calvinism are "..the foundation of which all faith is built" and that, "..it is very prudent to understand it." Yet, I didn't want to go into too much detail on these ideas, because there is so much more to explain that it would take another long blog post in order to do so. The main purpose of this blog is to try to explain what I have come to believe about adoption, that runs almost parallel to Arminianism, that may help you understand how we are predestined or elected by God. Pray that God may open your heart and mind as we look deeper into His word and ask for guidance that you may understand the truth better of what His word should say to you.<br />
<br />
<b>The Theology of Adoption:</b><br />
<b><br />
</b><br />
The Theology of Adoption is what I have decided to call this explanation of predestination and election. Instead of focusing on the words <i>election</i>, <i>called</i>, and <i>predestined</i> I am focusing on the word <i>adoption</i>. For me to focus on this word I will have to pull out a few passages to explain, seeing as this word was not in the two passages I shared above. The first passage I want to share that brings this different idea into light is in Romans as well, in chapter 8 verses 14-17.<br />
<br /><br />
<br />
<i>"For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory."</i><span class="verse Rom_8_17"> </span><br />
<span class="verse Rom_8_17">-Romans 8:14-17</span><br />
<br /><br />
<br />
This passage starts off by saying that we are the children of God<i> </i>if we are led by the Spirit. We are not slaves to God, but heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ. When we received the Spirit, our adoption to sonship was received with it also. In Jewish culture it was custom for the firstborn to receive the inheritance of the father. If the firstborn dies, then the inheritance went to the next sibling in line. Because of this adoption, being heirs of God, we also received God's inheritance in the kingdom of heaven through the death of Jesus Christ. Christ was the first in line, then He died to the world and later rose from the dead. From His death we were next in line to gain the inheritance, seeing as He arose from the grave and is alive again we became co-heirs with Christ. Here is a different passage from Galations 3:23-29 to support this idea better.<br />
<span class="verse Rom_8_17"><br />
</span><br />
<i>"Before the coming of this faith, we were held in custody under the law, locked up until the faith that was to come would be revealed. So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith. Now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian. So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." </i><br />
<i>-</i>Galatians 3:23-29<br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
From the start this passage talks about coming to faith. When it says, "before the coming of this faith" it is talking about the time before we had faith in Christ. Before Christ came, the Jews were always following strict laws and customs and trusting in God in order to gain their inheritance of heaven. When Jesus came He changed a lot of the ways the Jews were to do things. Because of Jesus's death, all of us were no longer bound by the law to gain the inheritance of heaven. After His death we were then given the Spirit to become a child of God. From that, God is the Father of the Spirit and since we are now one with the Spirit we are also children of God. The Spirit sent by God comes inside of us then becoming a part of us. It says that the Spirit calls out, "Abba Father." Though it all comes from having faith in Christ Jesus and being baptized into Christ, otherwise the Spirit wouldn't come inside of us. The next passage we will look at in Galatians explains this a little more.<br />
<br /><br />
<br />
<i>"What I am saying is that as long as an heir is underage, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. The heir is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. So also, when we were underage, we were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces of the world. But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, "Abba , Father." So you are no longer a slave, but God's child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir."</i><br />
<i>- </i>Galatians 4:1-7<br />
<br /><br />
<br />
<i></i><br />
Before Christ we were all slaves to the bondage of the law. Once Jesus died and rose again, we were freed from that bondage receiving the Spirit of His Son. Through the receiving of His Spirit we also received the adoption to sonship. Here is an analogy, let's say a girl is pregnant and she cannot afford to take care of her baby. Someone can adopt that child before it is even born. Through that adoption, the child is then predestined to be the adoptee's child. The child has no choice in that. Let's fast forward to when the child grows up and turns 18. He or she can then decide for themselves if they want to legally keep the name of the person who raised them, or change it back to their biological mother's name. Let's go back and look at verses 1-3. We are slaves to the world until we come of age to decide to have faith in Christ or not. Once we decide to keep the name of the adoptee (God), by having faith in Christ, then we truly become sons and daughters of God. If we deny our Father then we will lose our status of heir, therefore losing our inheritance in heaven. Just like the child would lose the adoptee's name forever. One may say, "A loving God would give them the inheritance anyway." Here's quote that comes to mind about this topic:<br />
<br />
"When someone asks, "How could a good God send people to hell?" we should point out that, in a sense, God sends no one to hell. We send ourselves. God has done all that is necessary for us to be forgiven, redeemed, cleansed and made fit for heaven. All that remains is for us to receive this gift. For the person who does not want to be with God, even heaven would be hell." - Paul E. Little<br />
<br />
Here is another example in Ephesians chapter 1. This is probably the longest and last passage that we will talk about because it is rich with information about adoption and predestination. Let's start in verse 3:<br />
<br /><br />
<br />
<i>Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of his glory."</i><br />
<i> -</i>Ephesians 1:3-14<br />
<div>
<i><br />
</i>As you can see Paul uses the analogy of adoption to describe how we were chosen. It says that He chose us before the creation of the world, and in love predestined us for adoption through Jesus, and that He has freely given us grace. Just like in the analogy earlier about adopting a child. You can choose to adopt a child before they are even born; you may even have big plans for this child to go to a certain school or college and maybe even into a certain profession. You may have all these plans for this child, but once it is born and has its own free will, you cannot force it to do any of the plans you set out for them. With love, you can only hope that the child chooses the right path. I believe this is similar with God. He adopted us before we were even born, and has plans for us to be holy and blameless in His sight. Some of you may argue that we do not have free will. There is a quote from C.S. Lewis that I think explains the idea of having free will very clearly.<br />
<br />
“God created things which had free will. That means creatures which can go either wrong or right. Some people think they can imagine a creature which was free but had no possibility of going wrong; I cannot. If a thing is free to be good it is also free to be bad. And free will is what has made evil possible. Why, then, did God give them free will? Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having” (C.S. Lewis).<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
So because of our free will, <i>we</i> have made ourselves unholy, not God. In verses 7-10, it mainly is describing how we have redemption and grace through Christ. Then in verse 11 it says that we were also chosen, and in some translations, "made heirs" having been predestined according to God's plan. It goes on, once we believed we were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, which is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possessions. I just paraphrased the verse because there wasn't much of a better way to put it. It says, <i>"once we believed" </i>not "once we were chosen." Therefore it goes back to the idea of adoption, meaning, the time we chose to keep the name of the adoptee instead of the time the adoptee decided to raise us. Then, once we chose, we are marked with the seal. Once we accepted our adoptee to be our real father, we have gained his last name, giving us his inheritance at the proper time. Paul said it pretty plainly there in chapter one. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
So with the idea of adoption, yes we were predestined, but we still have free will to choose to either accept it and believe in Christ, or to totally deny God therefore losing the inheritance. From these readings I have found that the theology of being adopted makes more sense than saying that God has predestined certain people to eternal damnation. If God so loves the world that He gave His only Son so that we may be set free from the bondage of slavery to sin, why would He predestine His children to hades? That's why I believe all these passages we just went over describe the theology of adoption. They show that we have a loving Father that wants us to freely choose His name, to freely choose His kingdom and not our own. This is why the idea of being elected in the theology of Calvinism doesn't make sense to me. With the Calvinist's theology, it seems that you could believe that you have been elected when really you haven't due to lack of faith. With adoption God elects all, calls all, and chooses all. The decision to follow Christ and believe in Christ is up to you once you are of age, or when you are old enough to depict right from wrong. The idea of election has been a topic I have struggled with for while, because the Bible plainly states that we are elected, and that we are predestined. That's why when I saw that Paul gives the analogy of adoption many times, I felt at ease. I could not understand the Calvinist idea of election and predestination and have a verse like John 3:16. The idea that <i>God loves us all</i> does not make sense to me if He predestined people to eternal damnation. I see it instead that He predestined us all to be His children. He wants to save us; that is His plan. A loving father cares for his children; he doesn't plan out a path to send them to the worst place possible for all eternity. Just like Jesus gives the analogy of the Great Shepherd and the sheep, a shepherd cares for his flock. Everything Jesus did was out of love for His Father and others. God is love. <br />
<br />
If we were elected, not by our choice, but from His will, then there would be no point in missionaries. If we are all predestined to either God's kingdom or eternal burning and have no choice in the matter, then there is no purpose in trying to spread the gospel. Jesus commanded us all to make disciples of all nations. If God predestined us against our free will rather than adoption, then Christ's command would be completely invalid and contradict our whole belief. If anything that Christ says is invalid then He is no longer perfect, therefore no longer wholly divine. These are reasons why I believe Calvinism cannot be true, because it goes against almost everything I believe our faith should be built on, love. So read these passages over again and ask God to open your heart and allow the scripture to speak to you. This post was about adoption, and I realize that I have begun to argue against Calvinism toward the end here. But this was all part of the struggle I have had with these passages. The theology of Calvinism in election shook my world in theology, everything I had been taught and read was just crumbled like a cracker. This is why I have been arguing against it, so that maybe someone else that has had the same struggle as I with Calvinism can be at peace with the analogy or theology of adoption instead. <br />
<br />
I hope that this blog has helped grow your faith in Christ a little more and to understand better God's love for us all. I pray that your faith continues to grow through reading scripture and prayer. I pray that God's love will overtake you, and that you will surrender your life to Him for He is our Father, Creator, and Friend. Don't just take my word for what I have come to find, read His word for yourself and pray that God speaks to you clearly through it. May God be with you on your journey. <br />
<br />
<br /></div>
Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-6595957104754400932012-01-28T13:23:00.003-06:002012-01-30T00:26:12.639-06:00Following the "American Dream" or Following ChristThis blog is something that has been weighing on my heart very heavily recently. Due to the length of this blog I have broken it up into sections. In these sections I am addressing two main questions that are left for you to answer: Can we live the "American dream" and still be a Christian? And, how can we live in our culture to show to others we are Christians? These questions are important to address seeing as they speak to all of us as believers. There are a couple of books I have read that talk about this issue very strongly. One of them is a book by Francis Chan called <i>Crazy Love</i>, and another by David Platt called <i>Radical.</i> I'm sure there are many more books on this topic, but these were the two I have read recently so they were fresh on my mind. Yes, by the titles you can see that the ideas behind these books are probably going to be different from what we are used to. These books are basically saying that we are fading out as Christians, and that the Christ followers we are supposed to be are getting too comfortable in our worldly ways. So at the end of each section there are questions, thought provoking questions about what you just read, that are asking you what you are doing for God in your life. They are to make you ask yourself whether you are telling Jesus to walk next to you while you choose your own path, or if you are going to do a 180 and turn to Jesus and completely surrender everything you have to follow Him instead.<br />
<br />
<b>Our culture</b>:<br />
Let's start off with the main problem at hand, the "American dream." This idea, or dream, has been drilled into our minds since we were kids through advertisements and the media. At least for my generation it has seemed this way. Now when I say the "American dream" this is what I mean. The "American dream" is setting your goals: as the pursuit of well being, to be totally independent and self-sustaining, to be financially wealthy, to have the idea of a college degree as a "back up plan" while you pursue something else, to get married and have kids, to have a retirement plan for when you turn 65, to be able to go on vacation every summer or winter. These are just a few things that come to my mind to keep from going too far with it, I figure you get the idea. These are the dreams and ideas that many pursue daily, even those outside of our country get into the same mindset. Some are still good ideas or goals like getting married and having kids, but some people set that as one of their goals instead of it being for God's glory. I am here to ask, is this the way Christ wants us to live our lives that he so lovingly gave his life for?<br />
<br />
<b>Small changes</b>:<br />
I have been changing a few things in my life to try and actually start living it according to what Christ tells us in the bible instead of by the "American dream." For starters, as many of you may already know, I am a big gamer. Well, <i>was</i> a big gamer. Xbox Live was where you would find me late at night and many times very early in the morning. I would be playing online games, like Halo Reach and Call of Duty, for hours on end wasting away in alternate realities. Online play for Xbox isn't free either, as it costs around $70 a year. When you think about it with the common mindset today, that isn't a lot of money. It's <i>only</i> around $6 a month. Little things like this have been eating at my heart though. Small monthly payments here and there for things like entertainment, when combined, start to add up pretty quickly. I haven't played Xbox for almost a month now. For those of you that know me well, that's a big step. But I don't want to take credit for that, or pat myself on the back. I feel there is much much more I can change in the way I live or think. From this new mindset I have also cancelled my Netflix account and my cable TV service. I have begun to read the Bible daily, Old Testament and New. I have been trying to get into a routine of praying many times daily, and have begun to look forward to that time alone with God. I have been trying to start to go out of my way to help others. The idea of helping others has been growing on me a lot, and I have been thinking of different ways I can go about doing that. This is just a start of things that are to change in my life. So I ask myself, "What else can I do differently to show that I am taking what Christ says seriously? How can God use me <i>now</i> that will bring glory to him?"<br />
<br />
<b>Being blinded by our wealth</b>:<br />
There are so many in the world around us that are in need of help, and if we all start doing small things to change the way we live to help others, it will make a huge impact. I know the idea of everyone doing something small sounds kind of cliche, but try to prove it wrong. It hasn't been proven right because we are too caught up in our own little worlds to do so. Think about it. What do our comfortable lives of luxury have compared to sharing Christ's love? Nothing. The veil of our wealth surrounding us keeps us from seeing what Christ commands us to do as Christians. For example, us driving around focused on deciding where we are going to eat may be blinding us from seeing someone stranded on the side of the road in need of help. Because we are so concerned about where we are going to eat, we don't make time to stop and help them out. Look at the story in Luke 16 about Lazarus and the rich man. Because the rich man was so wealthy he lost sight of what God called him to do. The rich man had everything he thought he needed and became blinded by his possessions and luxuries. The poor man had nothing and still put all his faith in God for everything. Once they died, the rich was condemned to Hades while the poor man Lazarus was carried up to Heaven by its angels. After reading this parable I wonder, are we being blinded by our wealth like the rich man being too busy to stop and help someone in need? Or, are we covered by the veil of our possessions so much that we can't see that we are desperately in need of God's grace?<br />
<br />
<b>Churches</b>:<br />
Many churches across North America I feel are focusing on growth, as in more members, and bigger buildings. Some churches today will even give the example from the Old Testament of King Solomon's temple, as an excuse to make their buildings larger and more elaborate. How many examples do we see like that in the New Testament? When does Christ tell us to build our churches bigger and bigger? Does Christ ever say, "Build it and they will <i>come</i>?" Jesus commanded us instead to <i>go </i>and make disciples of all nations. The Bible even says that our bodies are the temples in 1 Corinthians 6:19. So by building larger churches, it sounds to me like we are trying to make it more comfortable<i> </i>for ourselves <i>here</i> where we are. I suggest once we reach that point of having too many people in our services that we branch off and make sister churches to spread throughout the community. I read an interesting line from the book by Francis Chan called <i>Crazy Love</i> that said, “Christians are like manure: spread them out and they help everything grow better, but keep them in one big pile and they stink horribly.” So instead of spending that money to build the one building, spend it on making a sister church on the other side of town. Better yet, don't build another church at all. Make two services, and spend the money that would have been used for the other church, to instead feed the hungry, serve the poor, or build wells in places that don't have fresh drinking water overseas. Even more, we could donate the money to an organization that is helping a cause like freeing slaves. Yes, human trafficking still exists. In fact there are more slaves in the world today than there has ever been in history with an estimated 27 million. It is shocking to hear, but there are millions of children captured and sold into slavery whether it's for sexual services or even physical labor. Freeing them, I feel, is a very big goal for us to accomplish. Many times I feel the church overlooks the needy, when that is our job to take care of them, not the government's. That is another topic on it's own. But as far as the causes go, I feel churches should have a large portion of their budgets set aside for things such as helping the needy. Look at Matthew 25:31-46 when Jesus talks about helping those in need. Jesus basically tells us that whatever we do for the needy, we are doing it for Him. If we truly love God, it will show by what we do for others. Are we building churches for our lives and our kingdom or are we building God's kingdom?<br />
<br />
<b>Simple But Drastic Changes</b>:<br />
<br />
<b>Prom:</b><br />
I feel as if we all can make a huge impact by making some drastic, yet in a sense, simple changes. Think about this with me for a moment. In our culture we are booked full of entertainment like special events and throwing parties. For those of you in high school: what event does most every girl think about more in her senior year? Prom. It may be anticipated even more so than graduation. I don't know a girl out there that doesn't get excited thinking about getting all dressed up, going to a nice formal dinner, possibly riding in a limo, and dancing all night long. It makes girls feel... well, like a girl. Prom is fun, and can be fun for any senior guy or girl. You are now graduating and this is how we are trained to celebrate it. This is your night that you have been looking forward to most all of your school life because of what you have been taught as a kid. You have been raised to look forward to this big elaborate party to celebrate something that is almost required of everyone to accomplish, graduating high school. Now let's look at the costs of this party. We can roughly estimate: dress -$200, shoes -$20, a tux -$100, a limo -$25 per person, dinner for two -$40, corsage and boutonniere -$30. These are all rough estimates and are most likely underestimating the actual costs. But from that cheap estimate we have $415 already, not including prom tickets and after prom expenses. Think about that for a moment. How many people are you graduating with that will spend around this much for one night of fun? If you estimated 200 couples at $415 a couple, that's $83,000. And remember that was a cheaper estimate. What could that money go to instead to benefit the lost and hurting people? Here is the kicker. There are children in other impoverished countries that don't even get the opportunity to go to school, and here we are spending so much money to celebrate that we simply graduated high school. What about those slaves I mentioned earlier. Just stop and think for a moment about how we have been trained to desire this night of celebration while there are others literally being raped every day and are cold at night with no place to sleep but a concrete floor. They are used totally against their will. Shouldn't we be desiring to help those in need as Christ helps us when we are in need? I'll admit, I went to prom and spent money for all those fun things limo and all. Looking back I ask myself, would it have been more worth it to get my senior class together, not to go to prom, but to spend that money on helping the needy instead? I say absolutely. I could have lived without that one night of fun, or that experience, knowing that we could have helped someone else in need. Is this starting to click in your heart, that this may be what Christ has been telling us to do all along? If so, here is an idea to get you started: you could go through all the motions as if you were going to prom by picking out the tux and dress and things, add up all the costs, find a cause to help support, and use that money for your chosen cause. You could even throw a small pizza party afterward to celebrate with a small portion of the money. Now <i>that</i> would be something worth celebrating, not for what <i>you </i>accomplished, but for what God<i> </i>has enabled you to do. Since I have already graduated, I wish that this realization would have come to me sooner, but those of you in high school or younger still have a chance to make a real difference to bring others to Christ. You are the senior class of your school, all the underclassmen look up to you. Would you be willing to step up and guide your senior class to help out the needy so that other classes may follow in your footsteps?<br />
<br />
<b>Sports:</b><br />
Let's take another shift on things and talk about sports. We as Americans love sports. Some of us watch it almost religiously. ESPN and Sports Center are the main stations that stay on some of our TVs daily. Let's talk about football, now that you have made it through almost the whole season. The Super Bowl is coming up, and it's a pretty big deal to us Americans. Big enough, that we throw huge parties for this event. Huge enough that stores stock up on snacks and finger foods especially so that people can buy them for their parties for this event. So large that the advertisement agencies plan long and hard and pay millions of dollars to play a commercial during the same time slot of this game. How many Americans do you think will be watching the Super Bowl? As large as we make this game to be, it was reported by the Huffington Post that over 68% of Americans that own a TV were watching the Super Bowl in 2010 (<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/08/super-bowl-2010-ratings-m_n_453503.html" target="_blank">huffingtonpost</a>). Now think back to all the weeks of the many playoffs that led up to this one game. Look at all of the Sunday afternoon and Monday night football games that are played. Think about all the fans keeping track of their teams all the way through the playoffs, or all the fantasy football leagues that were keeping track of points on individual players. With all that in your head, what do you imagine the world would look like if we were as obsessed with God as we were with football or the Superbowl even? What if we knew the word of God like we knew the stats of every player on our favorite teams? What if we were aware and as concerned about of the needs of the world like we were aware of the wins and losses of our favorite teams?<br />
<br />
<b>Other obsessions</b><b>:</b><br />
Now, personally I am not a big fan of sports. I couldn't tell you the head coach's name for the Tennessee Titans, so this topic doesn't hit me specifically in that area. So let's take it a step further for those of us that aren't in to sports that much. Like I mentioned earlier, I am a gamer. I could tell you countless details I observed in my online play. I could list what strategies I would use on certain maps, what perks I would set, what attachments for certain weapons that worked the best for me. The list goes on. I was obsessed with my gaming. I know more about those games still than I even know of the Bible. Like I mentioned in my earlier blogs that I have started to read my Bible daily so that by the end of the year I will have read it cover to cover. Even with these daily readings I still haven't caught up in the amount knowledge of the Bible that I still know about my video games, but I have learned enough to see what Christ is telling us. Many of you may have other obsessions that you know so much about as well. For some it may be cars, other games, or even outdoor activities. For others it may be movies or books like <i>The Hunger Games, </i>or <i>Twilight, </i>or maybe even a TV show like <i>Glee</i> or <i>Grey's Anatomy</i>. Whichever it is, in our culture we almost live for entertainment like these and become obsessed with them. We gain so much knowledge of those things that we enjoy, when really it is all pointless. Where will knowing whether you are team Peeta or team Gale, or whether you are team Edward or team Jacob get you 10 years from now? Now think about this for a moment. What are we investing our time in doing, what are we occupying our minds with day in and day out? What will you be doing when Christ comes back? When Jesus comes back will we be at a Superbowl party with our friends, playing some online Call of Duty, or watching the latest episode of The Office? Will we be reading our favorite fantasy book, watching an action movie, or memorizing the stats of our favorite players? Will we be at the local Mexican restaurant drinking margaritas, at a club dancing on the person next to us, or at a bonfire with some friends doing things we know we shouldn't be doing? Or instead, will we be in the kitchen serving food to the hungry, checking people in to a homeless shelter, or even downtown passing out blankets and a granola bar to those who wonder the streets? Will we be hosting a small bible study at our homes, at a worship service at our church, or even studying the word of God for yourself so that it may be set on your heart? In Matthew 24:36 Jesus tells us, <i>"But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man." (NIV). </i>I think Jesus says it pretty plainly there. So, what will we be doing when our time is up, or when Christ comes back to take us home? Will God be pleased to see what we were doing as He allows us to breathe our last breath?<br />
<br />
<b>Final thoughts</b>:<br />
I have been thinking about all of these topics so much recently. I feel this year is the start of something new for me. I am actually trying to follow Christ instead of asking him to follow along with what I want. I am not perfect, nor am I even close. I know that as I walk with Christ I will continue to make mistakes. This blog was to get you to think about what the Bible actually says, and what sort of impact it should be having on your life. I have to admit that this blog was very preachy, and you have probably heard it all before just said in a different way. Or you may even be a little upset or turned off by what I have said. I pray the latter is not the case. I pray that what you have read changes you, or makes you reconsider what you may have thought was one thing, but is really something else. I feel as if so many of us get caught up in the worldly desires and pleasures and forget what we were put on this Earth to do, and we need reminders. This was simply a reminder. We as Christians have a set of commands to follow so why aren't we following them? Not everyone feels that they are called to go overseas to be a missionary, but no one is "called" to be a missionary. In Matthew 28:19, we are all <i>commanded </i>by Christ to go and make disciples of all nations. <u>All nations</u>. That means our nation as well. So whether that's in our backyard or 3,000 miles away from our hometown, this is our command to follow. Let's start taking the Bible seriously, and start taking God's word to our heart. Let's start by prayer, asking God to change our hearts so that we may fully surrender everything to him. Then let's go make disciples with those who work with us. We don't need a stadium full of people or a church building full of people to make disciples. Christ spent time with His twelve daily, lived with them, and taught them what they needed to know. Aren't we told to be like Christ? In everything we have read about Jesus and know about him, was He not perfect? I know, we are fully human and we are not God so we will make mistakes. Though that shouldn't stop us from loving God and totally surrendering our bodies, like Christ surrendered His for God to use for His own glory. This is the example Christ gave us and if we love God, we should follow it. Now, let's do what it says and <i>go</i>.Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6307759653701645811.post-3035724702151425342012-01-08T21:44:00.001-06:002012-01-12T13:36:30.940-06:00A little about me.This is my first time blogging since the xanga days (many of you do not know what that is), so it has been a while. That just means I have all that much more to say that has been building up over the years. I thought I'd start my first post about me so you can get an idea of where I come from for my posts in the future. So here it is!<br />
<br />
I was born in Murfreesboro, TN, the city that is the very geographical center of Tennessee! I know that's not very exciting, I just thought that I would add in a fun fact about my birthplace. When I was born on Wednesday, my lungs did not disperse the oxygen into my blood like they were supposed to so I was hooked up to an oxygen machine. The local hospital's machine could only give me up to 70% oxygen and I needed more. I was then life-flighted up to Vanderbuilt and put on 100% oxygen there. By the next day the doctors suggested to get everyone together because I was not expected to make it to the end of the day. God let me live, and by Sunday they could see small improvements in my condition. To give you an idea a to how bad off I was, when they put me on the machines one of my lungs had two holes punctured in them, and the other later had one hole punctured in it from the pressure of the machine. I was 9lbs and 5oz in the NIC at Vanderbuilt with premature babies that needed hearts, and I was labeled as in the most critical condition. The next Sunday they planned to expect me to be there for at least another 6 months. By the following Monday, the doctors couldn't explain what happened but said I was healthy enough to be sent home. So that night I was sent home at about 8:30pm twelve days after being born, and have never had any breathing issues since then. <br />
<br />
At the age of six, I began to ask questions as to who Jesus was and why we went to church. After long talks with my parents and pastor, I "accepted" Christ as my Savior. I was young and did not fully understand the unending grace of God (and I am still learning), but I feel that I believed in Christ as much as a six year old boy could.<br />
<br />
I have lived in Murfreesboro my whole life. I went from one of the oldest schools in the city called Central Middle School to the newest called Siegel High School. I was in the first class to go all four years at that school, and graduated in 2007. From there I went to the MTSU, which was deemed the largest state university in Tennessee with around 26,000 other students. School was never "my thing". I had other goals for my life. I have always thought that God had bigger plans for me, but through high school and college I started to stray away from that idea. I started thinking more about me, my life, and my big plans for myself rather than His plan for me. I decided to move out after I graduated at the age of seventeen. I got a couple of jobs along with taking sixteen hours in school. I started becoming lazy and started missing classes, although I would still go to work so I could pay bills. I was never the party type or into drugs, so I stayed out of that crowd. Work, sleeping in, and gaming was my thing. I dropped out of college the beginning of my second semester after flunking the first. I had a 0.42 GPA. Recently, I went back to school to retake those classes and with the help of God I brought my GPA up to a 2.9. <br />
<br />
I was never good at test taking and would always question "why" I needed to learn something instead of just taking the time to learn it.This, like many, is the question I have asked about so many things throughout life. As I have gone around asking "why" I have found many answers and many dead ends. I am twenty-two years old now, and even though I "accepted" Christ at six I have recently been re-awakened to only find the glory of God staring me in the face. I spent four days watching live sessions of a conference called Passion, reading my Bible, and praying. Now that the sessions are over, I am still reading His word and praying more than I ever have. I have now decided to fully surrender my life to Him. <br />
<br />
This blog is about my studies from being raised in a Christian home my whole life, mixed with the views of others on Christian theology that I have adopted, and my daily Bible readings. I pray that in these blogs, God gives me words to bring Himself more glory and praise, and that you may open your hearts to His word. Whether you like or not what you see here, I challenge you to go read His word for yourself!Ben Parrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14102160936525829066noreply@blogger.com1